Growlanser: The Dual Darkness
by GreatLight432
Summary: The first Growlanser fic for this site. Learn how the saga all began... Chapter 5 has been uploaded, and extended!
1. Prologue

**Growlanser 3: The Dual Darkness**

Author's Notes: After going for so long without seeing a Growlanser fanfic(of ANY kind), I've decided to step up to the plate and fill the gap. Basically, this is going to be a novelization, so those who have played the game will know what to expect. As for those who haven't...get it! NOW! It is a wonderful tactical RPG, and I highly recommend it(tell you the truth, I didn't even like FFT, and I still like this.:D).

One other thing worth pointing out...there will be slight changes in the dialogue and perhaps actions. There are good reasons for doing so, so please don't complain because I'm not doing copying the script word-for-word. That'd be pretty boring for those of us who have played the game, yes?

Enough of that, though...on with the story!

_Disclaimer: _I do not own the characters inherent in this fic...sadly, they belong to Atlus and Careersoft. Too bad...Yayoi is HAWT!

**Prologue**

Xironia Federation

"It was you, wasn't it? You killed him!" a scared, yet enraged voice screamed into the night.

"...That realization has come too late to be of much use to you now," came the reply. The voice was smooth, confident...and as oily as the wiliest snake. "But then, you never were much of an assassin, or a thinker."

"Dammit!" the first voice spoke again.

Soon, the cloud cover of the deep night broke, allowing the full moon to enlighten the scene below, which seemed typical of most action-adventure movies; one man, a young boy almost, clung to the top of a cliff with one hand, his other arm hanging limply at his side, the clothing covering it bloody and torn. His silver hair, almost the same shade as the moon, shifted gently in the wind as he searched for a way out of his predicament while trying to maintain his precarious hold.

The other, standing on top of the cliff face, was an older, taller man, his own silver hair slicked back, dressed in black leather armor. He sneered down at the boy as the moment was savored, his pale skin almost glowing in the moonlight while his sunken eyes danced in twisted joy. Suddenly, he knelt down, reaching for the boy's hand.

"No! Don't touch that!" the boy screamed in even more anger.

Ignoring the demands placed on him, the man loosened, and then pulled free a gem from the ring that was settled on the boy's finger. Holding it up to the moonlight, the gem sparkled, and the man's twisted grin seemed to grow even larger.

"So, this is the Invisibility Gem..._captivating_," he said, whispering the last word.

"Give that back! You have no right to that!"

The man leisurely looked down on his prey and chuckled as he pocketed the Gem. "If you require this bauble to carry out your job, you aren't much of an assassin, are you? And besides, what good is a dead man going to do with it, anyway? It will be put to much better use in my possession..."

The boy's eyes widened, and despite the strength of his voice, fear and a pleading note came through. "Dammit! No!"

The man's eyes glowed maniacally as his grin took on a sharklike quality. "Oh, yes...the higher we climb, the greater the fall...see?"

With contemptuous ease, the man ground his foot onto his prey's fingers. Stubbornly, the boy refused to let go, a grunt of pain his only indication of how close he was to letting go. But before he could prepare himself for anything else, the man kicked his hand off of the ledge.

"AAAAAAAAHHHHHH...!"

The man's grin remained in place as he watched his pathetic rival disappear into the inky black night. It was not until he heard the barely audible CRUNCH! that he allowed himself to move away from the cliff, heading back to his employer to report a successful job.

"What a coward...just like your parents, Gray..."

Dark Mountain

Finally done with putting out the last of the fires left from the attack, the man slumped down into a makeshift chair, mopping his forehead beneath his headdress. His eyes surveyed the area sadly.

It had been so brutal, and yet so quick...none of them, not even the Lord, had known what was going on until the attack had started. And by then, the best they could do was only contain the devastation.

Heaving a sigh, he returned to his feet to continue his rounds until a call caught his attention. It was one of the acolyte messengers, one of the few to survive the attack.

"Master...Master, Peter wants to speak with you...!" he called.

Normally, the Spirit Master would berate the youngster for speaking so loudly, but given what they had just endured, such a rebuke would be beyond pointless. Hurrying over to the fallen form, he knelt near the man's head. A quick glance confirmed what he had feared...there would be no hope for this man...especially not after he dared to confront their attacker in direct combat.

The prone Spirit Messenger's eyes opened, and a second later, focused. "M, Master...how bad is it?" he asked in a soft, yet surprisingly strong voice. Though, the Master thought, perhaps it's not so surprising...before his calling as a Spirit Messenger, Peter was one of, if not **the**, strongest swordsman in the known world. It should come as no surprise that even near death's door, he was able to stay so strong.

"...I'm afraid that it looks bad," came the answer at last.

Peter nodded and lay his head back down. "Thought...so. Master...as I...advance into...the cycle, please do me...one favor?"

"We owe you much more than one favor, Peter...name it."

"My daughter...tell her...tell her I'm sorry...and tell her that I love her...have _always _loved her...very much. Please..."

The Spirit Master nodded, and placed his hand on the dying man's shoulder. "I swear to you by the Dark Crystal...she will know, Peter. Go now into the cycle with no regrets."

A final, shuddering breath escaped the man's lips before a glowing aura formed around it, Within short order, the aura coalesced into a medium sized orb that hovered above the expired body momentarily before one of the higher-ranked acolytes muttered a spell, granting the soul direct access to the Underworld. With the gates they had erected around the world destroyed, this was the only easy way for souls to continue in the cycle of life.

Slowly standing, the Spirit Master showed no outward emotion, but he was deeply saddened by this loss. Everyone here at Dark Mountain had had high hopes for Peter...many had even expected him to become the next Spirit Lord in short order.

The thought of the Spirit Lord brought the Master from his reverie, and he headed toward an area that was cordoned off to all but the healers and himself. It wouldn't do to have the acolytes see their leader injured as badly as he was in the attack, after all.

As he entered the area, he could feel a steady increase in Dark Power. Concerned, the Master tried to discern its source...and as the power built to increasingly high levels, he suddenly realized it came from the Lord's room.

Confused, and more than a little worried, he ran once more, entering the room where the Dark Lord was to be recuperating...and instead saw him finishing a few chants for an Art.

The Spirit Master blinked as he took in the scene; the Dark Lord's battered body half-kneeling, half-slumped in the middle of a large circle with various symbols of their order woven into it, the lines glowing with the Dark Power they were being infused with. He had never seen this type of ritual for an Art before...unless...

"Dark Lord!" he gasped.

The man turned to his subordinate and friend with a fiercely determined expression on his face, even through the mask of bandages. That look alone stayed the Spirit Master's initial action to stop his leader from completing his task.

"Master...you can't do this! Its..."

"Improper? I know, old friend...but I must do this, or the world will suffer the same fate as we just have...only far worse. I will not let him have his way...Zion MUST be stopped, and I will do whatever is necessary to insure that he is!"

"...I understand, Dark Lord. I will stand aside, and pray for your success."

The visible portion's of the leader's face softened, and he answered in turn, "Thank you...I leave the task of managing Dark Mountain to you...Stay strong, all of you...I promise I will return...and Zion will be stopped! Once that is done, I will return to the cycle...but only after my goal is accomplished."

That said, the circle grew ever brighter, forcing the Spirit Master to shield his eyes. Thus doing, he missed seeing the Dark Lord's body fall to the ground as his spirit left it, again hovering just as Peter's soul did over the spent form. Instead of disappearing into the Underworld, however, it spiralled upwards before disappearing through the ceiling...and into the world...

Aggressival Capitol, Blizkriea

The highly decorative office was silent and dark, almost brooding along with its lone occupant, who stood staring out the window. The view was impressive, commanding a large span of the capitol's royal and business districts...but the man's mind was not on the view at all...rather, it was on the upcoming conflicts.

It was a game he would have to play carefully...but also quickly. Time was running out, not only for the citizens that were starving, but also for himself.

In answer to that thought, there was a knock at the door, and it opened immediately afterward. The urgent steps on the carpet told the room's occupant all he needed to know about the visitor before he even turned.

"Prime Minister...what brings you here at such a desperate time?"

The Prime Minister was a little unnerved at the commander-in-chief's almost unnaturally calm tone, but his business kept his tone as firm as it always was. "I have been sent by His Majesty the King on a matter of great urgency."

One didn't need to ask, but the commander did anyway. "Mmm...Xironia Federation, right?" Coming from him, it was more a statement than a question.

A smirk appeared on the Prime Minister's face. "Yes...the King has grown impatient with your efforts. Your sincerity in defeating them is being...questioned. It should be trivial for our military to overrun a nation of farmers and simpletons!"

"The concern is noted...our bellies all cry out for the days of bounty past." That was more than true enough...though the military was kept better fed than most anyone else, the commander kept himself on the brink of nourishment, to remind himself of the stakes should he fail. "But...should we wage a full-scale assault on Xironia, would it not be likely that they would simply enlist all their farmers to defend the kingdom?" This was said as he turned a critical eye on the Prime Minister.

"Of course...and that would decrease their crop output, naturally...but waging a war after the harvest is even more foolish! Have you not noticed that we have starving masses now, commander? Fully half of them will starve this winter..._**half, **_commander! The King will not stand idly by while that happens!"

A smirk appeared beneath the commander's mustache. "There is no need to be so concerned, Minister. I have a plan in place to take control of Xironia...and with a minimum of bloodshed, since our next goal will be conquering Schelfengrif."

A slight frown appeared on the Minister's face at that, but he nodded agreeably. "Very well...I will take you at your word, and inform the King." A barely detectable threatening tone surfaced with his next words. "I pray that you are correct...for your sake."

The confidence, along with the smirk, never left the commander's face. "You won't be disappointed...nor will you have long to wait for results."

Another nod from the Minister, and silently he left the office.

**Notes:**

Blizkriea - They never DO mention the name of Aggressival's capitol, so I just picked a variation of the infamous 'Blitzkrieg' attack pioneered by Germany in WW2...since the Aggressival name is indicative of their nature.:D


	2. The Lost Boy

Author's Notes: Well, here we continue on! As I've said before, artistic license is being taken with the script...hopefully for the positive. Enjoy this second part, and before signing off, let me thank my friend HeimdalDeep6 for his encouragement in even writing this, and suggestions for putting this game in story format!

_Disclaimer: Growlanser 3 is not mine...too bad, because all I'd really want from it is Yayoi. *sensual growl*_

_**There's a time and season,**_

_**Memories of a different life**_

_**Skies of blue so distant, **_

_**Hiding dreams long forgotten.**_

_**Far off from this present,**_

_**Distant from reality**_

_**When thoughts are left wandering  
There's a truth lost and found  
and so...**_

_**There's a season,**_

_**And time for dreams**_

_**Paths that have crossed and loves that were lost.**_

_**There's a sorrow, a memory,**_

_**Open your hands and reach out!**_

_**Two hearts are stronger than one!**_

**Chapter One**

Xironia Federation

Anxiously, a cloth was soaked, wrung out, and then placed over the boy's head. The recipient of such comfort slowly quieted down and soon ceased moving.

With a sigh, and a remaining expression of deep worry, the girl standing vigil at her patient's bedside left the cloth on his forehead. She had been awake for three days...and it showed, though only to those who knew her best.

"Miss..."

_ 'Speaking of whom...'_ she thought with a humorous sigh as she turned to the door. The older man stepping through was rugged, dressed in the light armor of a soldier in the Xironia Federation Corps; light tan leather armor, with a blue band around the waist, and a white headband up top, on which they had their ranks(informal as they were) stamped.

"Miss, hadn't you better rest now? You've been watching over him for almost three days now..." he asked gently.

The girl looked over at her patient with deep concern. She knew Renault was right...and yet... "His condition is so precarious right now, Renault. I...I can't sleep just yet. If I did, his condition might change, and for the worse, before I could help him."

Renault scratched the back of his head in resignation. So this is how it was going to be... "Miss Annette, you can't keep pushing yourself like this. Your father..."

Annette turned toward the soldier with a stern, yet smiling, look. "Father understands...he just worries over me too much, like you all do! Besides," and at this, her tone softened, "if Mother were here, she wouldn't rest either."

"Miss..." was the only thing Renault could say in response. Though it happened ten years ago, the loss of Mrs. Burns was something that touched everyone in the Federation deeply.

Sighing, Annette allowed a wry smirk to show on her face. "Alright Renault, you win...I'll keep watch for another half hour, and then I'll get some sleep...will that keep you off my back?"

Renault smiled, giving her shoulder a brief squeeze. "That will be fine, Annette. I'll be checking up on you in a half hour, so you'd better be sleeping then!" he warned.

Putting a playfully sarcastic tone in her voice, she answered, "Yes, brother!"

"Hey, somebody's got to watch out for you, since your father and uncle are always so busy...might as well be me, right?"

"I suppose..." Annette started, but then she looked again at her patient, and a cloud seemed to pass over her face. That silver hair...the set of his face even when he was sleeping...

Seeing her look, Renault asked, "Miss? Something wrong?"

"Huh? Oh! No, nothing's wrong...I just thought I saw something strange, that's all."

Renault knew she was lying, but decided not to push it, and shrugged. "Alright then...I'll check up on you and our patient later, okay?" Turning to the door, he opened it, and then stopped, looking back. "One other thing...did you notice he has a Ring Weapon on his finger?"

Annette nodded absently. "Yeah...weird, isn't it? There aren't many of those around in Xironia..."

"...You think he came from Aggressival?"

Annette silently thought that matter over. Xironia was an agricultural nation, with a volunteer defense force to keep their borders safe. Aggressival, their nearest and most domineering neighbor, had a fully trained and equipped military for their efforts...which seemed to consist mostly of harassing Xironia for their foodstuffs.

Ever since the sun's power seemed to be dying out, crops from all over the world began failing. Only Xironia was still producing enough food to feed its people...the Schelfengrif Empire, Rolandia Kingdom, Aggressival...all three countries had suffered greatly.

_ 'Thank goodness for the civil war in the Empire, or we'd be facing attacks on two fronts,'_ Annette thought. Turning back to Renault, she shook her head. "I don't think so...he's not dressed like one of them, anyway. But we can find out more when he wakes up."

"Okay...take care, Annette."

Turning back to her patient, Annette sat down in the chair near his bedside, and again soaked the cloth in the cold water before replacing it on his forehead.

_ 'It's so strange...he looks so familiar, but...'_ She shook her head. _'Maybe everyone's right...maybe I _am _pushing myself too hard...well, I guess it won't hurt if I take a little nap here right now...at least I can say I slept.'_

Thus decided, she settled herself in comfortably, keeping a watchful eye on the boy all the while...but before she was even aware of how comfortable she really was, she was fast asleep.

Black...everything was so...black, but...soft.

The smell of...smoke? A fresh wind?

A pair of blue eyes opened sharply, and glanced around the room quickly while the rest of his body remained as still as possible. He couldn't see much...but since it appeared to be the inside of a cabin, there wasn't much TO see.

A soft murmur from his left drew his attention, and he turned...only to face a young girl who...was sleeping? Was he captured? For what? By whom?

Silently, he watched her sleep, taking in her appearance. She was dressed rather extensively in red. Given her hair color, he guessed that it was her favorite color.

Slowly, he sat up, swinging his legs over the edge of the bed. As he put his weight on his right arm, he winced.

_ 'Must have injured it...but when?'_ he thought to himself. His mind tried to drift back, but...

_ '...I...I can't remember anything! Wait...calm down...'_

Looking himself over, he had just begun to flex his hands and search for belongings when a voice from behind startled him.

"Oh good, you're awake!"

Jerking in surprise, he spun on his heels to face the girl who had been at his bedside. He was struck again by the change in her demeanor...she had seemed so helpless and demure in sleep...but now that she was conscious, he could see the strong will she possessed, even under the smile she greeted him with.

_ 'She's...rather pretty...'_ was his thought.

Her smile disappeared as she lectured him, "You know, you ought to be thankful you're alive! That area you collapsed in is filled with monsters who would have loved to eat you for a snack! What could you have been thinking going...?"

"Um...who...who are you?" he blurted out, catching her off guard. He winced...not so much at her reaction as the sound of his voice...even that didn't sound familiar to him. _'Not good,' _he thought to himself.

Annette blinked, and then the smile returned. "Oh! I'm sorry about that. My name is Annette. What's yours?"

"...I...I can't...remember."

This time, the smile disappeared to be replaced with a look of concern. "...Well, I can't say that I'm surprised. Think hard...can't you remember anything?" she urged.

The boy nodded. "I'll try to remember..." he said. Desperately, he fought against the fog of his mind, trying to discover something, ANYTHING, that would give him identity...purpose...something. He could feel it...he was so close...

He jerked his head upright suddenly, almost startling Annette. A smile, one that he could feel hadn't been on his face in a while, suddenly appeared. "S...Slayn! My name is Slayn Wilder!"

Annette smiled too, relieved that at least her patient had something to their identity. Being robbed of your identity was one of the most crushing blows one could receive. "Nice to meet you Slayn."

A knock at the door interrupted them from pursuing any other leads, and in walked the soldier from before, along with another man, dressed in a combat robe. "Annette..." he called softly.

A look of joy on her face, the girl turned to greet their visitors. "Oh! Uncle Marshal!"

Renault smiled at Annette's positive behavior, immediately picking out the cause. "Well, it seems like our guest is feeling better."

Marshal looked Slayn over quickly, and then asked his niece, "Have you learned anything from him yet?"

"Well, not much...all he really remembers is his name, Slayn. He seems to be suffering from amnesia," Annette answered regretfully.

"Hm...that's unfortunate."

"Well, let me introduce you all, at least..." Turning to Slayn, he said, "Slayn, this is my Uncle Marshal. He's in charge of the Federation Defense Forces here."

Marshal smiled and gave a courteous bow. "Hello."

Pointing to the other soldier, she continued, "And that is my uncle's right hand man, Renault."

"Good to meet you," Renault said with a smile.

"And I'm Annette Burns, daughter of the Xironia Federation president," she finished.

Feeling a little uncomfortable under the attention from the soldiers, Slayn nodded and smiled to both men. Thankfully, both turned their attention back to Annette.

"So, you say he's a Ring Master, Annette?" Marshal asked.

"Well, it's the only explanation I can come up with as to why he has a Ring Weapon. But like I told Renault...I don't think he's from Aggressival."

The man frowned, scratching his chin. "Hm...even so..."

Seeing where he was going, and understanding, Annette cut her uncle off with, "Why don't I keep him here for a while, at least until he recovers? He should be fine here, at least...and after all, he only just woke up."

An agreeable nod came almost immediately. "Sure, that would be fine..."

"Good...but surely you didn't come just to discuss our mysterious guest..." Annette stated.

That jolted the older man's posture, and he suddenly remembered his initial reason for coming. "Oh! Right! I thought you'd like to know that Aggressival troops are reported to be heading this way by one of our patrols. We're beginning to pull back."

Annette quickly nodded, a serious expression on her face. "I see...alright. Uncle, do what you must to organize a defense. I'll gather and evacuate those who cannot fight."

Both men nodded, with Marshal speaking. "Alright...stay safe, Annette."

Annette turned to Slayn, an apologetic look on her face. I'm sorry...you heard what they said. Just sit tight here...I'll be back as soon as I can!" she promised. Then, before he could say anything at all, all three left.

A closer look at his surroundings confirmed a few things; namely, that these people did not intend to actively keep him in captivity, that he was the only patient they had had(in this cabin, anyway), and that they were concerned for his well-being. That was shown in the amount of food that had been placed on the other side of his bed, along with the medical supplies near where Annette had been keeping vigil.

Suddenly, it dawned on Slayn that he was bored. He had no idea how long Annette and the others had been gone, but he could at least walk outside and stretch his legs, couldn't he? Nodding to himself, Slayn opened the door and stepped out. A sudden gust caught the door and slammed it harder than he'd wanted, which caught a soldier's attention. It was Renault.

"What are you doing out here?" he asked, the surprise and concern evident on his face. "You should be inside resting! Aggressival troops will be here any minute!"

Aggressival...that was the second time he'd heard that name. He could guess that they were a neighboring kingdom to Xironia, but... "They will attack?" he asked.

Renault's face sombered, and he nodded sadly. "Yes...our troop patrols are rarely wrong. A detachment of Aggressival soldiers is coming here ready to fight." Sighing, he added, "They have suffered much more than we in terms of the failing sunlight and decreasing food supplies. Now they harass us regularly for the bounty we have been blessed with." Turning away from Slayn, he looked up at the darkening sun. "How...how have we come to live in such hateful times?" he asked.

There was nothing to say to that...even if he did have his memories, Slayn wasn't a resident of Aggressival or Xironia, so he had no right to interfere. Well, nothing to be done about that. He could get some exercise at least, and then head back inside like they seemed to want.

Before he took more than a few steps however, the greenery around them seemed to erupt with life. Armored men came from the east and south with frightening speed, and from the west came two soldiers who could easily be identified as battlemages.

Panic set in Slayn's mind as he watched the soldiers on both sides brandish their weapons threateningly as they faced off. What could he do? He didn't even have a weapon...

"Marl, you take the west!" That was Marshal talking, organizing the defences. Slayn caught sight of him now, wondering how he missed seeing the commander earlier. An answering affirmative came from Slayn's right as Marshal continued, "Grappa, cover the east!'

"Yes sir!"

"Renault, protect the stranger!" Marshal finished as he covered the south with another soldier.

"Yes sir!" Renault called out, his eyes covering the battlefield in its entirety. Without taking his eyes from the field, he called out, "Stay close Slayn! This could get ugly! If things get too hectic, don't hesitate to chip in with your Ring Weapon! They react to their owner's wills to aid them in battle!"

'_Ring Weapon?'_ Slayn looked at his hand, only now noticing the ring on his right hand. Closing his hand, he concentrated, trying to _will_ the weapon into existence...and without fanfare, it did, coalescing into a massive sword that by its looks should have required two hands and more strength than Slayn possessed to wield it...but to his surprise, it was as light as a feather. Feeling more confident now, he took a defensive stance, his body seeming to instinctively know what to do.

He saw an opportunity to his right, where the soldier Marl and his partner were squaring off against the battlemages. Pushing off quickly, he ran in, delivering a quick blow to one of them...but he could feel as the blade connected that his muscles were severely atrophied, and he did little more than disrupt the magician's conjuring.

Suddenly, his head exploded with pain and light, causing him to stagger. Images appeared in between the flashes of light, like a slide show...

_ A boy dangling at the edge of a cliff as a sinister man in black leather armor sneered at him from above..._

_ A young man, dressed in loose clothing, devastating a shrine effortlessly, while killing those who tried to stop him..._

_ An older man, wearing military garb, meeting with a boy in his office..._

_ That same boy, for the third time, lying in a crumpled heap as a girl...Annette...finds him..._

The pain finally overcame him, and he dropped to his knees, the sword disappearing from the loss of will.

"What's going on? Why have you fallen to your knees?" Renault called out in concern..

Slayn tried to answer, but only a soft groan escaped his lips as he slumped down.

"Come on! You have to get up!" Renault cried out, racing to Slayn's side.

It was unfortunate that an Aggressival soldier saw his opportunity, breaking through the strong Xironian defenses. With Renault's back turned, he couldn't possibly deflect the blow that was coming...but nonetheless he did try, only to fail.

The Aggressivalian's blade sliced a deep gash across the front of Renault's body, slicing almost effortlessly through the man's armor and skin, drawing a grunt of pain from the man as his blood sprayed.

The last thing Slayn heard before the darkness claimed him was Marshal's scream, "RRREEENNNAAAUUULLLTTT!"


	3. Journey of a Thousand Souls

_Disclaimer:__ I do not own Growlanser...any of it. If I did, you can bet your ass all four games would be here in the US by now._

**Author's Note:** Okay, here's a longish chapter for ya. Should tide you over until I get the next one up. By the way, I notice a lot of times that Theodora is entitled Princess at some points, and Queen at others...so I'm staying with the assumption that she is Queen and will refer to her as such.

**Chapter Two**

Xironia Federation

_Two months later..._

Slayn sighed as he tried to stretch the kinks out of his neck while keeping his focus. Grunting softly as one bothersome knot finally popped, he ran a hand through his shaggy hair, and scanned the horizon.

Even if the borders were not clearly marked, it was quite easy to see where the line between Aggressival and Xironia was. One only had to look at where the land was still lush with life, after all.

He sighed again, wondering what time it was. He didn't mind doing his part for the Xironia Defense Forces(he owed them his life, after all), but just like anyone, he looked forward to his downtime.

"Sorry I'm late. Your shift's over, I'm here to take the post," came a voice from behind him.

"Wha...?" Slayn gasped as he spun. That voice, it couldn't...

But there he stood. Renault offered an apologetic smile as he stepped forward to stand by his comrade at the lookout. His shock must have shown on his face, because Renault smiled a little more bemusedly as he approached. "What are you staring at? I'm fine," he said.

But Slayn knew that was a lie. With the bandages wrapped around his head, and the soldier's arm in a sling, there was no way that Renault was 'fine'. Still, it was good to know that the man was at least okay...he'd been worried ever since the skirmish with Aggressival forces near the cabin he'd regained consciousness at. His gaze returned to the land for one last look as the wind picked up slightly, ruffling Slayn's hair. Oddly though, Renault's didn't even twitch.

A loud sigh came from the older man. "I'm certainly better off than this god-forsaken land," he muttered darkly, catching Slayn's attention.

Slayn nodded in agreement as they both looked out over the dying land. Renault spoke again, "It seems so long ago, but...I used to grow vegetables here, on this very spot, when I was little. Then...the sun's power began to weaken, and this world started to die..."

Again, Slayn nodded, looking up near the orb in the sky as if to assure himself that it was still giving off some light...it was difficult here in Xironia, an agricultural nation, with the sun weakening as it was. He could only imagine how difficult things were in Aggressival and Schelfengrif, where they had not been so fortunate.

As if reading Slayn's thoughts, Renault added, "But we've been lucky...and now, other kingdoms want that 'luck' for themselves..." Catching himself, Renault smiled apologetically at the silver-haired young man. "I'm sorry...you know all of that already. Even in the two short months you've been with us, you're well aware of what we're up against." Taking on a paternal tone, he gestured with his good arm. "Go on...get some sleep and leave this post to me. There will soon be a time when no one will get rest."

Slayn hesitated for a moment longer. "Renault...are you sure you're going to be okay?" he asked.

The older man turned to face his companion, and raised an eyebrow that wasn't hidden beneath a swath of bandages. Instead of answering Slayn's question, he asked, "Slayn...do you feel that responsible for the wounds I suffered?"

The younger man swallowed and looked down, which gave Renault the answer he needed. Forcing a cheerful tone to his voice, he clapped Slayn's shoulder. "Slayn, there's no need to worry about me, okay? I just wanted to help a friend in need. If those bastards come back however, I'll give them a double helping of what they gave me!"

Slayn looked up sharply, his blue eyes catching Renault's own gaze. After a bit, he finally smiled. "Okay, Renault...thanks again."

Nodding, the soldier stepped back, and gestured again, more sharply this time. "Alright then...now get going and catch some rest. I'm on watch duty now."

Rolling his eyes a bit, Slayn turned to comply. He had just reached the ladder when he heard:

"Hey! Yoo-hoo!"

_ 'Uh oh...'_ Slayn thought at hearing the tone. Peeking over the edge, he confirmed his fears; it was Annette with another soldier, one Slayn didn't recognize, at her side. After a brief wave, the young girl started climbing the ladder.

_ 'If she finds out Renault's out here already...'_ Slayn winced at the thought. Turning, he was just about to urgently tell Renault to hide...but stopped short when he saw that no one was there.

_ 'But...the only way up or down this tower is the ladder here...'_ Just as he reached this point in his thought process, Annette and her escort had finished their ascent.

"Shift change!" Annette announced with a smile. The soldier beside her gave a short salute and said, "I'm here to relieve you."

Slayn frowned. Renault must have decided to sneak into the schedule ahead of time, and just found a way to hide himself right away...at least until Annette left.

_ 'If she caught him out of bed...'_

"What in the world are you looking at?" the girl in question demanded, startling her companion out of his reverie.

"Uh, Renault was..."

_ 'OH SHIT!'_

Slayn clapped a hand over his mouth, offering a plea for forgiveness from the man for his slip of the tongue. However, instead of the pointed look and demanding questions he was expecting, Annette looked both sad and confused.

"Renault? Was...was Renault just here?" she asked in a soft tone.

Confused, but cautious as well, Slayn nodded.

Annette blinked several times, then shook her head. "No...that...that's impossible, he's..."

"...What's wrong, Annette?" Slayn asked. Her subdued manner was starting to scare him, and he wanted to get to the bottom of it.

"...We didn't want you to know, but...Renault died."

Those words felt like a punch to the gut, and his face paled, even beyond his usual skin tone. "W, what?" he whispered.

"He was concerned only with your survival until his dying breath...I, I'm sorry to even tell you this. I know how much guilt you must feel about what he did for you," she apologized.

Guilt didn't even begin to cover it. Covering his face with one hand, Slayn tried to deal with this information...and sudden twist.

_ 'So...if Renault was dead...then who was I talking to?'_ That was the million elm question, wasn't it? He almost said something about it, but then stopped. It was bad enough hearing about the death of someone he literally owed his life to, but to have everyone think he was crazy on top of it...

_ 'Silence it is, then...'_ he decided. He came out of his musings just as Annette turned to him.

"Come on...let's go home now," she suggested in a more cheerful, but still subdued, tone.

"...Yeah...," Slayn agreed.

Stepping aside, the girl allowed Slayn to descend first, after giving him a warning not to look up, to which he smiled and promised not to. Once he had reached the bottom of the tower, Slayn walked over to double check the barricade from up close. Satisfied after his cursory check, he heard Annette beside him.

"It seems like just yesterday that Aggressival attacked us, but...it's already been two months." Again, her tone darkened as she whispered, "I...I still miss Renault so..."

Slayn winced as he turned her way. He didn't think she was doing it on purpose, but she didn't need to make him feel any more guilty, after all. Still, he kept his peace...especially since it was hard to be upset with a woman who was silently crying.

Her grief was quickly brought under control, and she gave a forced grin to her companion. "Come on...Father will worry if I"m gone too long."

Nodding, the duo started on the road that would lead back to Voltone, when a voice came from the guard up top: "Um, excuse me Annette...there's something I need to ask you."

"Oh...okay, I'll be up in just a moment," she called back. Turning to her companion, she said, "Go ahead and return to town. I'll be there soon." With that, she turned back to the tower and scrambled up with respectable speed.

Shrugging, Slayn turned around and headed to town as he was told...

The woman and boy came running to the field, the boy glancing around with an urgent expression on his face, bordering on panic. The woman carried a bag looped around her body as she scanned the area with a more methodical set to her face. Finally, she spoke:

"Alright Gray...this is the area. We'll have to split up in order to find it in time!" she said to the boy.

Gray nodded, a fiercely determined expression on his face. "Okay!"

At that moment, a man dressed in tight, black leather armor stepped forward from the cliff face where he had been leaning. His movements were carefully measured until he was within a few feet of the pair. "Something terrible must have happened for you to come to such a forsaken place as this, in such a hurry," he stated in a voice that set Gray's nerves on edge.

The woman however, seemed too focused to notice, and instead turned to the man, nodding. "Yes, we need to find Lobelika Root at once!" Out of the corner of her eye, she saw that Gray was already running off to take care of that task...which meant that she needed to hook back up with him so he knew what to look for.

The man's smirk turned into a wide grin at that statement. "Lobelika Root...of course. This is the only place where they are to be found, right?"

"Please sir...I have to find the root in order to cure this child's parents! It's the only way to cure them," the woman replied. This time, however, she noticed something wrong...the man didn't look..._right_...maybe it was his sunken eyes? Or the armor?

"Yes, indeed...the poison was very specifically made." A mocking tone slipped into his voice as he added, "Only a great healer would know that a cure was even possible. It's quite fortunate that I chose to watch this place, just in case."

Slayn blinked as he came across the two standing further along the road. He didn't know either of them, but one(the man) made his whole body almost...rage. Stepping closer, he began to pick up their conversation better...

The woman backed away slightly, her eyes shining with fear. "No! It...it's you, isn't it?"

The assassin laughed. "Of course it is! You knew the answer even before the words passed your precious lips. You see, I was commissioned to kill the boy's parents as painfully as possible...which would be rather incongruous with you healing them, am I right?"

Slowly stepping further back, and yet knowing that it would do no good, the woman asked, hoping to appeal to some shred of decency in the man, "Would you kill a defenseless woman too?"

For a moment, the assassin appeared to think it over..."I do have a distaste for uncommisioned work...but I fear there is no other choice, given the circumstances."

Seeing that pleading was out of the question, she tried another tactic: "If you kill me, Gray will still find the root, and another healer will mix it! You can't win!"

Another laugh erupted from the assassin, and the woman knew she'd lost. "An undirected child? Find a Lobelika Root? Never...and besides, he won't get the chance to finish his quest." From a pouch on his back came a large folded blade that unsnapped into a giant shuriken, with a chain that looped around the man's wrist.

By this time, Slayn had seen enough, and ran forward, calling up his Ring Weapon. He didn't think he could get there in time for melee combat, but...

Stopping, he began reciting the Arias that he could recall, forming the magical power to cast a spell that would hopefully distract the assassin and allow the woman to get away.

In the meantime, the man leaped forward effortlessly and swung his weapon. "DIE!" he hissed. The shuriken struck home, drawing forth a gash in the woman's stomach.

"Aaahhh!" she screamed, falling to the ground.

A curse almost slipped from Slayn's tongue, but he ignored it, instead continuing with the Arias...it was still a race against time. If he could finish this bastard quickly enough, he might still be able to save the woman.

The shift of movement caught the assassin's attention, and he looked over at Slayn with an unamused expression on his face. "Well, well...we have a spectator. Isn't that unfortunate...for him."

_ 'Oh yeah? See how you like this, you murderer!'_ Slayn thought, reaching the end of the Aria. Flinging his arm out, he shouted the final incantation: "FIRE ARROW!"

The air at three points was violently compressed to form three spheres of fire that immediately raced toward their target to slam into him repeatedly. The assassin fanned the smoke away from his body and then angrily glared at his opponent.

"Despite my distaste for uncommissioned work...it will be a PLEASURE to finish you off, boy!" the assassin snarled, leaping forward again as Slayn began chanting another Aria.

_ '...!'_

Just at that moment, he rolled to the side as the man's weapon sliced into the ground where he had just been standing. Had he remained in his original position, it would have neatly bisected him. Miraculously, he managed to keep chanting the Arias, and was almost at the end now.

"Hey, bet there's something of value in this bag..." came a new voice to Slayn's left. Glancing over, he saw that another man, dressed in a brown vest, blue jeans and a leather hat was reaching for the bag that the woman had dropped. He was about to shout out for the man to drop it, Arias be damned, when the woman got up anyway and started weakly reaching for it.

"P, please...th, that's my..."

The man's eyes widened and he leaned back as she clutched his vest. "What? Yo, you're still alive? Hey, let go!" Seeing that she wasn't going to comply willingly, he gave her a harsh kick.

"Aaahhh!" came the scream as she lost her grip and fell back. Seemingly in a panic now, the thief started running away from the field of battle.

"FIRE ARROW!" Slayn shouted again, aiming this time at the thief, his anger for such scum now blinding him to the other, more immediate, threat. The fireballs slammed into the thief's back, sending him down to the ground with a cry of pain.

A whistling sound reminded Slayn of other problems. This time, with no chance to dodge, he raised his Ring Weapon to catch the shuriken on its blade, locking the two weapons for a moment. Grunting at the force being suddenly applied to his muscles, he fought back as the assassin grinned maniacally. His attention was broken when he saw the thief regain his feet and start running away again.

"You! Thief! Do not take another step!"

The bandit in question immediately halted and turned, quivering in his pants(literally). "L, look...I'll give you the bag, just...please, just don't kill me!"

"I have no interest in the bag. I merely wish to impart some friendly advice. If you value your life, you'll forget anything you may have seen or heard here today."

The bandit's eyes bugged out, and he looked around. "Seen? I, I ain't seen nothing!" he blurted out.

The assassin smiled. "Mmm...you're smarter than you appear...now get lost!"

In a burst of speed that surprised everyone, the fortunate thief did just that. However, that break in concentration gave Slayn the edge he needed, and he twisted the sword to send the shuriken sliding along its length to the ground. This maneuver caught the man off guard, and Slayn took full advantage of it, catching his opponent in the gut with his shoulder. As the killer staggered back, the boy tensed his muscles, and swung with a cry of furious rage, cutting deeply across his enemy's chest.

"NGH! This...this is insanity...I can't...lose to this kind of village trash!" the man exclaimed.

Still flush with adrenaline, Slayn called out, "That was but a taste of my strength!" As he spoke those words, the assassin faded away, confusing Slayn. Shaking his head, he decided not to dwell on it, and instead ran to the victim.

She was already trying to get to her feet, and he placed one of her arms over his shoulder to assist her. Her gaze was already focused on the direction the thief had gone.

"The bag...and now, the medicine will..." She sighed regretfully and turned to her rescuer. "Thank you...you saved me from certain death. My family name is Burns, and I'm from the Federation."

For the second time today, Slayn was shocked into speechlessness. _'Burns? But Annette doesn't have any other family in the Federation beyond her father! Or, so she told me...'_

"That vile man attacked me while I was looking for medicinal herbs. Please...I know it's shameless to ask, but could you retrieve my bag? I wish I could help you more, but I only have this button to aid you in tracking down the criminal," she said. Holding her hand out, she dropped a button into Slayn's hand, who looked it over briefly before pocketing it.

"Alright...I'll get the bag back as soon as possible, I promise," Slayn replied.

The woman smiled gratefully. "Thank you...when you get it back, bring it to the Burn's house in the Federation. That should be proof enough to them that I sent you." Suddenly she winced a bit, which kicked up Slayn's anxiety another notch. "Ma'am, are you sure you're alright?" he asked.

She nodded in reply. "I don't have any more time to talk...I have to find those medicinal plants. Excuse me..." And with that, she walked off.

For a long time, Slayn stood there watching her, debating whether to follow her or not...but then a familiar voice called from behind him.

"Oh, Slayn! What are you doing waiting here?"

Also for the second time today, he turned to see Annette approaching him. Glancing back to make sure the woman was okay, he started at seeing that she was gone.

_ 'But she couldn't have been more than a few feet from me...'_ Before he could ask Annette if she saw where the woman went, she spoke: "You know...this is the spot where I found you. Did you remember that and come here? It almost seems hard to believe that it's been two months since then."

"Yeah...I thought you were an angel that day," Slayn replied, only half jokingly.

Annette smiled in response to the joke, answering with "Flattery will get you everywhere, but I'd much rather that you try to remember who you are."

Slayn held up his hands in surrender and chuckled. "Okay, Miss Annette...I promise I'll try."

"Good. But we'd better hurry...it's getting cold, and I don't want to worry Father."

"Right..." Slayn agreed. Still, he couldn't help but feel something was odd...and it suddenly hit him as he looked at the ground.

The only visible footprints were his own!

Blinking in surprise, he ran to where he distinctly remembered he and the assassin had locked weapons, ignoring Annette's questioning call from behind him. Once he reached the spot, he looked down again...only to find his footprints. No one else's.

_ 'Okay..._this_ is starting to get spooky...!'_

"Slayn! What's wrong?" his companion asked once she'd gotten to his side.

Turning to her, he asked, "Annette...who was that person I just saw?" _'Tell me you saw her, please don't say that you don't know what I'm talking about...'_

His hopes were dashed when Annette's brows knitted together. "Person? ...I don't see anyone around. Maybe you're imagining things?" Pointing to a nearby rock, she added, "Maybe you mistook this rock for a human shadow."

Yeah...yeah, that sounded better. Slayn relaxed a bit and nodded. "Okay, yeah...you're probably right. Maybe the long day is just wearing on me."

"Well, that being the case, let's get back to Voltone so you can rest! Come on, Slayn!"

They almost made it without having to fight, but some monsters did decide to attack just as they got within sight of the city. Fortunately, it was nothing they couldn't handle, and with the two of them tag-teaming each monster in turn, they made it to Voltone with little more than scratches.

As they entered the city, just in front of the Presidential Mansion, Annette mused, "Home at last...I'm always relieved to get back...but I suppose that's silly of me, isn't it?"

Slayn had no comment for that, since she practically dragged him to the mansion, where they both stayed. As they entered the main foyer, a maid quickly walked over and bowed.

"Miss Annette! I'm glad to see you made it home safely!"

"Thank you. Is Father around?" she asked.

The maid shook her head. "No..the Assembly has run longer than expected, so he's still there...but we do expect him back any time now."

"Oh, I see. Thank you."

Turning to Slayn, Annette suggested, "Why don't you relax until my Father gets back? You could use the rest, I think..."

Scratching the back of his head, Slayn nodded. "Okay..."

Just as she was about to turn and ascend the stairway to her room, Annette turned. "Oh, and I'll make sure to let you know the second my Father gets back, okay? So don't sleep too soundly!" she finished with a wink and laugh before heading to her room.

Shaking his head, he had just turned toward his room door when the maid caught his attention: "Mr. Wilder...there's a briefing that I was asked to put on your desk. It's going to come up during the meeting, so you might want to look it over before then."

"Oh, alright...thank you."

Entering his room, he sighed, feeling a little more relaxed...aside from having two 'freak out' episodes today.

_ 'The second one can be explained, I suppose...but what about Renault at the outpost?'_

Shaking his head, Slayn looked over at his desk, a little relieved to see that the briefing was actually 'brief'. His eyes skimmed over the information within, committing the important parts of it to memory. Almost all of it was information that he already knew, but it never hurt to be reminded of it: the crisis with the sun and(by extension) the crops, the civil war within the Schelfengrif Empire, and the state of Xironia's troops. After he was done reading, he yawned and fell back onto his bed.

Frustratingly, he found that he couldn't sleep. No matter how much he tried to get comfortable, sleep wouldn't come. Letting out a frustrated groan, he got up finally, and sighed. "Maybe I'll just take a walk around town," he muttered out loud. It seemed like the smartest course of action, so he quickly left his room and headed out into town.

The air did seem to do wonders as far as clearing his mind, and his two earlier episodes disappeared like a bad dream. Glancing up, he noted that the sun was about four hours from setting.

_ 'Whatever they're talking about at the Assembly, it must be of extreme importance...this is the latest I've ever known President Burns to be gone...'_ Slayn thought.

Having no particular destination in mind, Slayn simply wandered, looking over the wares that the shops had. Selections at the fruit and fish stands were still good, as near as Slayn could tell...and it served to remind him of the precarious situation all four countries on the continent were in.

As he passed by the cemetery, a flash of pain shot through him, seeing all the people dispersing. Whether people thought he was or not, Slayn DID feel responsible for the young man's death. Seeing so many people who obviously cared about him...

Shaking his head, he hurried on, not wanting to face the mourners just yet. His own pain was still too fresh to deal with consoling or apologizing to others.

Just past the cemetery, he heard a loud wailing, and glanced around quickly. His eyes locked onto the source with ease, as the woman was wiping her eyes furiously with a handkerchief.

"RENAULT! NO, not Renault...!" she sobbed. A man standing at her side was trying awkwardly to comfort her, but it was obvious he was nearly as broken up as the woman. Still, Slayn had to give him points for trying.

Once again speeding up his stride, he walked over to the other side of town when a sign attached to a barricade caught his eye. Leaning down, he looked at it:

**Coming Soon!**

**Voltone Arena will be proud to present all your fighting needs!**

**Various competitions with prizes worthy of the champions.**

_**Come one, come all. Fight hard!**_

1 on 1

2 on 2

4 on 4

Damage Competition

Free For All

Upper, Silver, Gold and Platinum Class tournaments

"Looks like it'll be really something, huh?"

Slayn jerked and looked up at a young lady smiling at him. Seeing his hesitation, she nodded to the sign. "The arena," she clarified. "I bet it's going to really be something...the best ever!"

Smiling back, he shrugged. "As far as I know, no other city even HAS an arena..."

"Exactly! That's why this will be so fantastic! Voltone will be even more famous once it gets built! And I'm going to work there, too!" The lady was positively bubbling with excitement, which caused Slayn to chuckle.

"You sound awfully sure about that."

Her eyes glittered mischievously and she glanced around before lowering her voice to a whisper. "I know some people working on the arena, and they're going to give me an inside line on being the ticket taker!"

An eyebrow arched up. "Really? Well, when I come back to compete, I'll expect to see you in the ticket booth then," he said with a half-joking air.

"You bet! And I hope you give us a good show!" she shot right back.

After a bit more small talk, Slayn figured he should head back, and bid the lady farewell. Before he could walk too far though, a soft voice called to him:

"Young boy...yes, you with the silver hair."

Slayn stopped and glanced around once more. Renault's wife had disappeared(presumably inside the large building she was crying in front of), and the lady from before was too far away...plus, the voice didn't sound like hers. Finally, he spotted the voice's owner, tucked in a corner and wearing dark green robes. Walking up, he noted that the lady seemed to be quite old...but in spite of her apparent age, she was in good spirits and smiled as the young man approached her.

"Ah, so kind of you to take the time to talk to an old lady like me...you just possessed such an interesting aura that I had to speak with you."

Slayn's head tilted to the side, pondering her words. But before he could ask what she meant, the fortune-teller continued: "For your time, I tell you your fortune for free. Six stars will exert unusual influence on you."

Her eyes became dreamy and distant, and as she spoke, Slayn could swear he saw them change colours..."The Red Star glitters brightly. Believe in it and move forward. The Green, Purple, Amber, White, and Reddish-Brown Stars have yet to come to you, however...they merely await the moment of harmony." Her eyes sharpened then, and she smiled. "Impressive soothsaying, yes?"

Despite the confusion she was arousing in him, Slayn found himself smiling back. "Yeah...if only I knew who those 'Stars' you talked about are..."

"Master! We found some food for you!"

Turning, Slayn saw two boys and a girl come running up to the fortune-teller, holding wrapped bundles in their arms. They looked to be about six or seven years old, as near as he could tell. Stopping short, their attention turned to Slayn, who felt slightly uncomfortable under the combined stares.

His jaw dropped slightly when he noticed something else...they all had...

The one with red hair and a cloak tilted his own head and addressed the lady again. "Is his face known to you, Master? Do you sense a special power within him?"

"Special power? What do you mean, 'special power'? And...why do you kids have horns?" Slayn asked.

"Ah, so you DO have the sight!" the old lady commented. "You see, these horns are not visible to ordinary people. These are ogre-like children; they come from the place I learned my craft, and...do my bidding," she explained.

"Hob has the power to smash and crush! Gggrrr!" the boy who spoke first said.

His 'sibling', as Slayn guessed, looked distastefully at the boy and said, "While Hob is...ahem, less than refined, I'm known as Wize, since I have the power to grant intelligence."

Finally, the girl introduced herself shyly; "I, I'm Winkle. I like to move fast, and can give the power of agility!"

Slayn turned back to the fortune-teller just in time to see her nod, as though she'd made a decision. "This turn of fate grants that I impart to you the Power!" she spoke.

"Wait, Power? What's going on here?" Slayn tried to ask for answers.

"Bwaaah...Hob tired from gathering food. Crush and smash, crush and smash! No more today!"

Wize smacked his sibling upside the head, a look of anger on his face not unlike what the fortune-teller was wearing. "Shut up, you doddering simpleton! We all know we must do the bidding of the Master!"

"Oooooohhhh...but, do we _really_ need to do it this time?" Winkle asked, her face slightly pensive.

"All the more food for me if you don't, you miserable runabouts!" the old lady snapped. That had the desired effect.

"Bwwwaaaahhh...is not good, but we do Master's task! Win our challenge and get power! Huhhhhnnn!" Hobs said, flexing his tiny muscles. The sight was almost enough to send Slayn into hysterics, but he managed to keep his composure. He still had no clue what this 'Power' was that he was being given, but...if it could prevent more deaths like Renault's...

"The more successful you are in our challenges, the more power we'll bestow upon you," Wize added.

"Th, that means you need to do your best!" Winkle interrupted to clarify, still whispering softly.

Not missing a beat, Wize added, "When you feel confident enough to take it, approach one of us, and the challenge shall be offered."

Taking a short breath, Slayn nodded shortly. "Alright...I'm ready."

Leaning against a wall for a moment, Slayn was panting lightly, having completed two challenges.

_ 'You wouldn't think it by looking at him, but that Hob kid is _strong,' Slayn thought with admiration. He'd only barely managed to win that challenge, and Hobs had made him earn every inch of that. Then, he ended up having to play tag with Winkle and her brothers. Wize and Hobs weren't that much of a challenge, but Winkle...she was as hard to catch as a chicken...maybe even harder! It had been sheer luck that the ogre-girl looped around one too many times, ending up trapped by the well.

Now came the final test, and he was almost spent. It had only been fifteen minutes since he left the mansion, but he REALLY needed to get some rest now. Finally getting his breathing back under control, he approached Wize. "I hope you're not the athletic type," Slayn joked.

For the first time, Wize smiled. "You should have figured that out during Winkle's challenge. But you may rest easy...my challenge is merely a small quiz, to what grey matter rests in the cavernous space between your ears. Are you ready?"

A nod, as much of relief as affirmation. "Go for it."

Three questions later, Wize was surprised. "Impressive! You managed to answer all of them correctly!"

"Now for one more question..."

Slayn turned to the fortune-teller, wondering what THIS one could be.

"What type of combat suits you best?" she asked.

For a long while, Slayn thought the question over. Given that he'd only been in combat two or three times, he couldn't tell right off-hand...but something told him..."Weapon Combat," he answered.

"Interesting, yes. Now then, let me reveal new powers to you..." An aura surrounded the old crone's hand, and she placed it on Slayn's forehead. Immediately, an icy-hot sensation surged through his body, at first making him tense, then relax. Immediately after, her hand withdrew.

"There...use the Power wisely, young one. Our gifts are not given lightly," she added with slight sternness.

"...All right. Thank you, and take care!" Slayn said as he walked off, waving. Right now, he didn't care about figuring out these powers...he just wanted to get home and sleep.

Moments later, he was doing just that.

"Slayn?"

A muffled grunt was her response. Needless to say, it didn't satisfy her. Walking over, she gently shook her companion. "Slayn, wake up...my father's back."

"Mmmm...five more minutes, please?" came the half-coherent mumble.

Annette wasn't sure whether to be amused or annoyed. After a few seconds, she settled on the latter. "Wake up, already!" she half-shouted, punctuating it with a hard shove.

With a soft growl that transformed into a yawn, her companion finally woke up, looking at her with bleary eyes which he rubbed at to clear his vision. "You didn't have to shout..."

"I didn't shout...but you weren't going to get up unless I did something! You are so much like him..." Annette said with a grin.

"Oh? Like who?" Slayn asked, his curiousity piqued.

"Like...uh, nevermind. Listen, my father's back, so make your way to the meeting room quickly, okay?" And with that, she was out the door in a flurry of red and auburn.

"...okay..." he muttered to himself. Looking himself over, he winced. Falling asleep in his clothes seemed to be habit lately, but they looked presentable enough for a meeting. Running a hand through his hair, he stepped out and proceeded into the meeting room, noting with a slight wince that he was the last to arrive. _'Great...why didn't she wake me up earlier?'_ was his first thought, but when he several other people there stifling yawns, he had a feeling that he wasn't the only one rousted out of a good nap.

"Now that we're all here, let's begin," President Burns began. "The purpose of this meeting is to inform all of you of the decision that was reached at the General Assembly."

Slayn reacted with interest at this point, especially seeing how grave Burns' face was.

"I'm sure all of you are aware of the abnormal weather conditions we've been experiencing. Thus far, we've been fortunate in that Xironia has been affected less than other kingdoms...for example, Aggressival," the president continued.

"Which has led them to organize attacks such as the one that claimed Renault's life," Marshall pointed out. Slayn winced again, and despite his thoughts that he was being utterly ridiculous, he couldn't help but feel that everyone was looking at him.

President Burns' lips compressed slightly, and he nodded. "Correct. That sad circumstance has touched us all, and prompted us to approach the Empire in order to form a defensive alliance."

Annette turned to look at her father, a puzzled frown on her face. "The Schelfengrif Empire? But...I thought they were in a state of chaos since the Emperor died...?"

"Indeed they are...but I have faith that Prince Karl and Queen Theodora are strong enough to restore order. Queen Theodora especially, is a strong leader. I think even James would admit that much."

Marshal leaned forward over the table, his brows drawn together. "...But with the turmoil in her kingdom, would she honestly consider becoming our ally?"

Nodding, Burns answered, "Yes...if the terms are attractive. In return for troops to aid our defense, we will send them supplies that they desperately need."

Annette smiled slightly at her father's words. "Seeing that their food problem borders on famine as well, I think they'll see the benefit of the alliance."

Slayn nodded in agreement with the others. Xironia wasn't able to spare much in the way of food and other supplies, but to a near-starving kingdom like Schelfengrif, anything would be warmly welcomed, and reciprocated in kind.

_ 'Besides, we have no other options...'_ Slayn thought. The President's next words cut through his thought before they could go any further.

"Now...to the point of this meeting." Turning to Annette, he said, "Annette, I'm entrusting this epistle to you. You are to deliver it to Queen Theodora at once. Your success is crucial to our survival."

At first looking slightly overwhelmed, Annette quickly composed and steeled herself, nodding. "I know...and I won't disappoint you, Father."

_ 'You're a strong lady, Annette...I hope you do well,' _Slayn thought. Annette glanced his way, and their eyes locked, both smiling for a moment before looking away.

To Marshal, Burns continued, "Aggressival is sure to be watching for any movement at our borders. Therefore, I ask that you accompany her to ensure Annette's safe arrival."

"Yes sir!"

"...Slayn, I would like you to accompany Annette as well."

The man in question jerked in surprise and blinked. "Uh...me?" he asked stupidly.

The Xironian president nodded. "Yes...we need to delay Aggressival's discovery as long as possible, so I cannot send a large force."

Slayn realized what else the president was saying, and he was extremely grateful. "You can count on me, sir!"

"You have my complete trust. Godspeed to you all."

The troops that were present then began to file out of the room. Just before he exited, Marshal spoke to Slayn, "We'll travel in the lead and confirm that your way is clear. We'll meet up at the border."

"Yes sir...we'll see you there!" Slayn said. Nodding, the commander left.

Just as he was about to stand up and get ready himself, President Burns said, "Slayn, Annette...once this matter of the alliance is finished, I have another task for you."

Hearing the serious tone of his voice, Annette cocked her head curiously. "What is it?"

The president sighed, his face grave. "We have all worked hard to make a good life for ourselves and our families here. But...if the abnormal weather continues, even _our_ prosperity will end. We have to find a suitable place to start over."

"...Start over? You mean...we're going to move everyone to another land?" Annette asked.

There was a pause before Burns answered. "If our survival comes to depend on it, yes. We need to be prepared for the eventuality, just in case."

Annette looked down as Slayn pondered this new assignment. Before he could contemplate it too much though, his companion spoke again, "But...leaving will be so difficult. I mean, Mother is..."

"It will be difficult for us all if it comes to that, Annette. But we must do what is necessary to survive. We won't go until we have no other choice, but we must be prepared for that circumstance."

"...I know. It's just difficult to think about it."

Gently grasping his daughter's shoulders in a near hug, Burns smiled slightly. "Then don't, until we must. Right now, I'm counting on you two to get that letter to the Empire Capital."

When she looked back up, it was once again the Annette Burns that Slayn knew. "Right! We leave at once!" And with that, she left.

Moving away from the wall, Slayn was about to follow her when the President's voice stopped him. "Slayn...you understand why I gave you that duty and not the Defense Corps?"

The question made him pause. Come to think of it, why DID he get such an honor? Turning back to the president, he shook his head.

A short sigh was released, and he explained, "Ten years ago, a terrible chain of events took both my wife and my best friend from me." Looking up at Slayn, he continued, "Looking at you, I see my friend. He was strong, reliable, and had an unfailing sense of justice...just as you seem to." Shaking his head, he added, "Pfft! It may sound crazy, but...it puts my mind at ease. Please...carry out this assignment successfully. I will be forever in your debt if you do."

"I will guard her with my life, sir." And with that, Slayn walked out...feeling that something big was about to happen...


	4. Escape to Schwartzhaas

_Disclaimer:__ Don't own. Don't sue._

**A/N: **Author's notes are at the end of this chapter!

**Chapter Three**

The journey to the border town of Schwartzhaas was made mostly in silence, both Annette and Slayn being absorbed in their thoughts. Once or twice, Slayn did glance back at his companion, curious as to what she was carrying in her small package, but each time he shrugged and didn't think about it. Monster attacks came a little more frequently at this point, but still posed no problem to the two fighters.

Within short order, they arrived at the bridge. Marshal called out to them as they approached:

"Ah, you made good time! Once we cross the bridge, we'll be in Imperial territory. So far, we haven't seen Aggressival troops, which is quite fortunate."

Slayn's eyes narrowed, remembering how quickly the bastards had swarmed upon the Xironian position when he first regained consciousness. Shooting a look at Annette, he could see that she was thinking the same thing. "Nonetheless sir, we'd better remain on high alert! I don't think they'll let us pass this easy," he replied.

Marshal nodded soberly. "Yes, you're right. We shouldn't relax our guard until...hm?"

Looking up at the commander's comment, both companions followed his gaze to see a harried Xironian soldier rushing to them from the rear. Once he got within range, he shouted, "Sir! Aggressival troops are heading this way!"

"What? How did they get this deep into Xironian territory?"

"I don't know, sir...but there IS a lot of them, and they are coming this way!"

"Damn...alright, everyone form up!" Marshal called out to the troops. Pointing at two, he continued, "Marl, Grappa! Go with Lady Annette and Slayn in case there is an ambush waiting at the bridge!"

"Yes sir!"

"Yes sir!"

With those two affirmations, both soldiers in question began jogging down to the bridge. Slayn could hear Annette mutter, almost to herself, "We cannot fail!"

Slayn nodded slightly in answer to her statement. The future of Xironia depended on it. Following the two soldiers at a brisk jog, they were about halfway to the bridge when a shout came from behind. Knowing they couldn't spare the time to look, and yet wanting to, both Annette and Slayn turned back to see a large group of Aggressival troops swarming forward. It made the honor guard look pitiful, and Slayn paled at the inevitable outcome. Shaking his head, he gently pulled on Annette's arm, jerking her attention back to the present. "Come on, Annette! We have to move!"

She nodded, and the two proceeded at a dead run, ignoring(and yet unable to stop wincing) at the sound of metal on metal, or(more prevantly) metal on flesh. They were very close to the bridge when...

"We won't let you go!" a gruff, gravelly voice shouted. Slayn turned his head to see two Aggressival soldiers emerge from the brush to the left of the bridge. A crash of more brush signalled the arrival of more troops from the right, and Slayn tensed.

"This isn't good...that general is strong...strong enough to cause some real damage," Grappa stated. The two siblings looked at each other, and nodded, seemingly of one mind. Turning back to Slayn, Marl spoke, "Get Lady Annette to the bridge...we'll hold off the general!"

He was about to mention the other soldiers, but then saw why Marl hadn't referred to them...the build of their bodies, the way they moved...they were obviously rookies. Something he and Annette could handle fairly easily if need be.

With one question answered, he was about to offer assistance when he caught something in Marl's eye. Knowing that he saw it, the twin smiled sadly, as if in acknowledgement of Slayn's insight.

Frustration and anger welled up within Slayn. Was there to be no end to the deaths?

Grappa's words cut into his thoughts: "Go! Our county is depending on you!"

Shooting a final glance toward the twin siblings, he led Annette to the bridge, hoping that they could get across before people died(and hoping also that it would mean Aggressival's departure). Unfortunately...

"HYAH!"

Slayn called up his Ring Weapon, bringing it forth just in time to deflect his opponent's attack. Twisting his body, Slayn kicked hard at the soldier's chest, sending him crashing into his companion. As the two struggled to separate themselves, he turned to Annette and shouted, "RUN! Get to Schwartzhaas, I'll cover you!"

Annette looked torn, glancing about the field briefly before looking back at Slayn. "Promise me you'll make it!" she pleaded.

Slayn nodded silently, and with that, the young woman ran, faster than he'd seen her move before, down the bridge. A frustrated howl came from one of the Aggressival soldiers, which brought the Ring Master back to the present.

His opponents had now regained their feet and were jockeying to surround him. Slayn knew all too well that he couldn't handle two-on-one as it was, and yet he'd been stupid enough to play hero for a girl he'd barely met...

The soldier in front swung his blade from the side in a large arc, which Slayn deftly blocked with his own sword. A slight whistling sound caught his attention then, and he twisted his body to avoid the second blade slicing down from above. Scrambling, he tried to get into a better position, but the two kept on him, harassing and penning him in.

_ 'Throughout the years, assassins have needed to fight multiple opponents in pursuit of their objectives...'_

Slayn blinked as he dodged another blow, this one forcing him away from the bridge.

_ 'To strike your opponents who seek advantage in surrounding you, use this technique...the Perimeter Pulse!'_

A flash of memory hit Slayn, less severe than before, but startling in its clarity. Closing his eyes, he could feel the power brimming from within, travelling into his weapon. Bringing it up high, with the blade pointed downward, he thrust it hard into the earth. The blade bit easily, making the two soldiers stop in confusion. Moments later, the ground surrounding Slayn erupted with pure energy, engulfing his opponents in its fury.

They didn't even have time to scream.

Quickly, he pulled his sword from the ground, noting distantly that his limbs were sluggish and almost refused to cooperate. Taking a quick gaze about the battlefield, his heart sank at the scene...almost all of the Xironians had been killed, their bloody bodies strewn across the battlefield. He could distantly see a group of soldiers being hammered back near the point they'd come from, and he could only hope that it was Annette's uncle, Marshal. As much as he wanted to help, he had a mission...and a promise.

Forcing power into his legs, he began to run for Schwartzhaas.

Schelfengrif Empire

Annette was found just inside the gates, pacing worriedly. When she saw Slayn, she smiled and hugged him gently. "I'm glad you're alright, Slayn! What about the others?"

The ensuing wince and way he refused to meet her eyes told her all she needed to know. Slayn was surprised that she didn't cry, though...a strong girl she was.

Keeping her voice calm, she said, "They sacrificed their lives for this. We can't let that go to waste." Turning, she slowly walked away and then suddenly turned back. "We need a pass to get through the South Gate. Give me some time and I'll get one...when you're ready, I'll meet you there, okay?"

Without waiting for an answer, she walked up to a guardhouse, and after briefly speaking with the sentry at the door, stepped inside.

Slayn gritted his teeth and was about to pound the wall near the northern gate when he saw a man unfurl wings from his back and take off into the air. Blinking, Slayn watched the man as he soared up, his wings seeming to leave a trail of sparkles behind.

"A Featherian..." he muttered. He'd heard a lot about them...humanoid offshoots that possessed the most impressive intellects known in the world, yet were utterly incapable of using magic. Seeing one was a rare treat indeed, since many assumed they had died off in the Rolandian Kingdom.

Shrugging again, Slayn's attention was then caught by something in the nearby alley. He could see a man talking to what appeared to be a dark, glowing orb next to some haphazardly dumped trash. Having seen some weird things in the last few days, the young man's curiousity was nonetheless piqued, and he wandered down the alley to listen in...

"Ooohhh...Raimy is so sorry to hear that. But...no one in this world can see you...and if you linger too long here, you won't be able to be reborn!"

The man sighed heavily and shook his head. "I cannot move on until she gets this...there will be no rest for me until then."

"Oooohhhh nnnooo...Raimy wishes she could help, but no one can see her either."

A movement of gray caught the diminutive fairy's eyes, and she turned to see a young man slowly walking down the alley. But she could tell...there was something different about him. It wasn't just the unusual aura he emanated, but the way he walked. It was almost as if he could...

"Um...excuse me sir? Do you need some help?"

Both the fairy and ghost gaped at the man's words before happiness overtook them.

"Y, you can see me? Please, I beg of you...do me one favor!" the ghost pleaded.

"Yes, yes! Please help this poor soul!" Raimy shouted happily.

The man's eyes showed a bit of confusion, but both parties could see the honest desire to help, which was encouraging enough to the ghost.

"This bag," he said, pointing to a small courier satchel, "I want you to deliver it to Falkenfreuk. A girl named Mary lives there...please, deliver the letter within to her."

The man's eyes blinked, and then he smiled. "Falkenfreuk happens to be my next destination." Reaching down, he opened the bag and removed the letter. "You have my word...Mary will receive your letter. Go in peace, friend."

A beatific smile appeared on the ghost's face just before he disappeared. At that point, Raimy hovered down in front of the nice young man, revealing herself to be a diminutive little girl dressed in a black blouse and a pointed hat.

"Raimy will go with to make sure the letter gets delivered to Mary."

A tilt of the head accompanied his question, "So...you're Raimy, huh? I wondered who else was talking to that guy...my name is Slayn. Slayn Wilder."

Ramiy beamed proudly. "Good to meet you, Slayn. Raimy is a Dark Fairy. You're a very special person to be able to see Raimy...were you aware of that?"

Slayn blinked at those words. "No...so not many people can see you?"

Raimy bobbed up and down several times, as if nodding in agreement. "Yep...you have to be special to be able to see fairies of any sort...of course, fairies like Raimy aren't that common either."

Slayn had to smile at Raimy's upbeat attitude. "Well...it's a pleasure to have you on the team, Raimy." Glancing back, he wondered if Annette was done with her business and decided to check. Pocketing the letter, he said, "Let's see about heading to Falkenfreuk, Raimy."

Leaning against a wall casually, Annette scanned the crowds, trying to keep an eye out for her companion...and at the same time, wondering where the heck he was.

Shaking her head, she told herself to stop being so impatient. He probably thought she might have been interested in checking in at the Inn or something for the night...truth be told, it probably wouldn't be a bad idea for that, but even with Aggressival unable to stop them now, speed was still of the essence.

Finally, a wave of the hand heralded Slayn's appearance, and she relaxed, smiling. Once he got within range, she said, "Oh there you are! I got our pass, so let's head for the Capital!"

"...Her name is Annette," Slayn suddenly spoke.

The unexpected comment gave the young woman pause, and she looked around. Seeing no one but the guard, she frowned and turned back to Slayn. "I'm perfectly capable of introducing myself, thank you!"

She was getting very disturbed by the look Slayn gave her. It was like he didn't even see her, his mind somewhere else. His next words almost confirmed it.

"Right...doesn't that make you lonely?"

That put Annette at a loss for words. Covering her embarassment with indignation, she spoke up sharply, "Hello? Are you feeling alright? I don't know what it is with you, but you're acting very strange lately. I mean, I know we've been through a lot, but you don't see me muttering to myself and ignoring you!"

Slayn's eyes suddenly refocused, and he shook his head. "Ah...sorry, Annette. I...well, I was kind of out of it," he apologized.

Shaking her head, this time in exasperation, Annette replied, "Look...just remember that we have a job to do, okay? Let's get back to the mission."

She had just started to leave Schwartzhaas when Slayn spoke up again; "Wait! Why don't we check out the shops first, Annette? Please?"

She turned back to remind him of their timetable, but when she saw his eyes, the words died in her throat. He did feel bad about ignoring her, and wanted a chance to make it up. The effect made him look almost pitiful, and Annette was torn between the mission or letting Slayn 'do his job'.

_ 'Well, it HAS been a while since I've gotten new jewelry...'_ she thought with a devilish smirk. Thus decided, she returned to Slayn's side. "Alright, Slayn...but let's try to make it fast, okay?"

Nodding in relief and agreement, Slayn led the way back into Schwartzhaas. The two of them had a good time, and Annette nearly forgot about the letter; he treated her to a nice meal(though it was more a snack then anything...the real food would come when they reached Falkenfreuk), and bought her a few Ring Gems that she eyed longingly. Everything was going well until they came to the eastern side of Schwartzhaas...

"Hey Slayn...check out that girl over there," Annette said, surreptitiously pointing. Her companion followed the indicated direction until...

"You mean that young lady in purple talking to the other lady in that house?"

"Yeah...I wonder if she's a Featherian?"

Slayn had to admit it was a possibility. The girl had wings, but...they looked frail and weak, not like the one Featherian's wings that he had seen. It might be the age difference, but...

While he was thinking this, the woman in the house gestured for the other girl to come inside, who smiled and bowed respectfully before doing so, bringing her out of their sight.

"That Featherian girl is weird..."

Both travellers turned in the direction of the other guy who had been standing nearby. He was still staring at the house as he scratched his chin.

The comment piqued Slayn's curiousity enough to have him ask, "In what way? She seemed normal enough to me...well, save for..."

"Her gimpy wings, right? That's just it...I've never seen her use them to fly. I wonder if that's the case...that her wings are just plain gimpy?"

Cautiously, Annette stepped in, "Well...maybe it's just because she's so you..."

The man shook his head to cut her statement off. "Oh no...it can't be her age. I've seen Featherian kids younger than her that fly just fine."

"...Maybe she's sick?" Slayn muttered.

Annette turned while saying, "It could be, but then..." Her voice cut off abruptly as she saw Slayn's look...the same one that he had at the South Gate.

Suddenly, he laughed, and waved his hand. "...It's none of our business anyway..." he added, and then came back to himself.

This time, Annette was almost in his face, her annoyance VERY visible and simmering. "Who, might I ask, are you talking to THIS time?"

Startled, he stumbled back a step or two, his hands raised in a placating gesture. "J, just myself Annette...I'm sorry, I just thought out loud, that's all!"

She didn't look like she was buying it, but she blew out a short breath and shrugged. "This behavior of yours is really starting to concern me, Slayn. Let's just get to Falkenfreuk before you REALLY flip out, okay?" With that, she stormed off to the South Gate.

For a moment, Slayn stood there, shaking his head and letting out a sigh. "It's going to take a bit to get used to having you around, Raimy." A brief pause, and he looked up, a rueful grin on his features. "Funny...real funny, Raimy. Anyway, let's go," he said as his feet followed his companion's trail.

**Author's Notes: **For those who are interested and have not played Growlanser 3, when Slayn is talking to Raimy, she's saying, from top to bottom...

"Is this girl a friend of yours?"

"Remember, Raimy is rare and invisible to most people. She doesn't see Raimy, remember that!"

"Raimy never thought about that. This is the way it's always been."

(among other things)"What reason could there be for her not flying?"

"Weeellll...it might be. But Raimy didn't smell puke breath."

The last one is left up to your imagination.;)


	5. Revelation in the Capital

_Disclaimer:__ Ownership of characters: Negative. Ownership of idea: Negative. Ownership of anything used in this story: Negative._

**Chapter Four**

Imperial Capitol, Falkenfreuk

"You've exceeded my expectations once again. Well done, Randolf."

"The job would have been easier if I had just been allowed to kill him. But, as it is, he will never walk unassisted again. He's been demoted from bedridden...to broken."

The two people talking atop a secluded section of Falkenfreuk's ramparts were quite different in appearance. The woman was dressed in the finest of garments, with not even a stitch out of place. Her face was kind and gentle on the surface, but the eyes spoke a different story...confirmed in her voice during these talks.

The man, for his part, seemed to ooze with evil. A bladed weapon hung from his back, and he was dressed in a black leather bodysuit, enabling him to move freely and quickly. Every inch of him screamed out his profession as an assassin. His sunken eyes helped to further convey the intimidating message that you did not want to meet him in a dark alley...or in broad daylight.

Theodora seemed not to mind however, as she continued, "And so how can he rise against us? Or side with James?" Bowing her head slightly, she added, "Here is the rest of your hard earned reward, Randolf."

With a gesture, a soldier stepped forward from the shadows, nervously extending a bag of money to the assassin. Randolf turned, his eyes locking onto the soldier's, before grinning. Satisfied at the response he got, Randolf took the bag from the soldier, who scurried away. He didn't need to bother counting it...stories were still told about what happened to those who stiffed him.

"You've done such a masterful job of taking revenge on Gray for the Emperor...say, why don't you work for us? We know all about what you can do...I think the rewards will be well worth your time," she offered with a sly smile.

Pocketing the cash, Randolf appeared to give the matter some thought before replying, "My allegiance belongs to no ideology, nation, man...or woman."

Disappointment settled on the queen's face before Randolf added, "However, if the...monetary incentives were sufficient...I could be persuaded to put aside my philosophy for a time."

With those words, the assassin turned and left a visibly relieved soldier, and a plotting queen...

Unaware of the sinister plottings above, two figures walked into the capital, stopping just inside the gate. Annette looked around once before turning to Slayn, who was more visibly awed.

Slightly amused, Annette spoke up: "Believe it or not, this is my first time here too." Glancing around, she added, "Remember, don't stare or the people here will think we're country bumpkins, which of course we aren't."

Slayn was about to comment on that, but decided against it. It turned out not to matter anyway...both of them ended up staring at the high buildings, and the enormous selection of Ring Gems, medicines, and armor available. Slayn made a mental note to have both he and Annette fitted for new Rings as soon as possible...even if the ones they'd gotten on their trip were junk, they could still use the extra money.

They had just passed the hotel and were on the final stretch to the castle when Annette gasped and said, "Oh! Wait!"

Concerned, Slayn turned around, not sure what the problem was, to see her looking at her clothes. "I...I can't go to the castle looking like this! I brought some formal attire with me, so why don't we get a room at the hotel so I can change?"

Personally, Slayn didn't see much wrong with her traveling clothes, but the thought of having an actual bed to sleep on later tonight appealed to him, so he nodded. "Sure thing, Annette."

After entering the spacious lobby, Annette approached the counter. The desk clerk smiled charmingly upon noticing her, and bowed. "Yes, can I help you?"

Returning the smile, Annette asked, "I hope so...do you happen to have two single rooms?"

Tempting though the thought was, Slayn decided to play it straight and not mention that one room was fine. If that really WAS all that was available, though...

"Oh, two singles? Yes, we do have availability," came the answer.

Annette quickly paid, and then turned to Slayn. "Okay, I'll change into my dress and be right back."

Before any comment could be made, she quickly hurried inside.

_A little later..._

"...Eh, that Annette is taking so long..." Raimy complained.

Slayn said nothing, but silently he agreed with his fairy companion. Still, he was used to this sort of thing, whereas fairies obviously didn't spend much, if any, time on their appearances.

Finally, a few MORE minutes later, he decided to step out and get some fresh air. Just as he reached the door, a familiar voice huffed, "Ugh, where is he going?"

Turning back, Slayn felt as if he was punched in the gut, seeing the vision of beauty that entered the lobby. Her light auburn hair flowed down her back, and she wore a formal light blue gown that clung to the right curves. _'If I don't look like a drooling idiot, it must be my lucky day,'_ he thought.

Feeling a bit uncomfortable at the staring, the woman asked in Annette's voice, "Why are you suddenly so quiet? Don't you recognize me?"

That brought Slayn out of his reverie. '_ANNETTE?'_ he thought in surprise. He'd never known...shaking his head, he replied, "I was stunned by your beauty. You're...you're like another person."

Surprised, Annette felt her cheeks flare up. "Oh! Um...th, thank you. Do I look like the daughter of a President? We can't address royalty looking like commoners, after all."

Slayn smiled and nodded. "Well, you do certainly look the part...but we'd better hurry so we can get your audience with the Empress."

"Right!"

To Slayn's regret, Annette walked along behind him, providing him with no chance to view her new attire. And it seemed to be all too soon before they reached the gates. At that point, Annette stepped forward to the guard, presenting her letter.

"I have come as a representative of the Xironia Federation to deliver this Epistle to Her Highness Queen Theodora," she intoned formally.

After a brief glance to insure its legitimacy, the guard nodded. "You alone may enter."

Annette blinked at that, and gestured to Slayn. "But...what about my escort?"

Shaking his head, the guard answered, "Only the messenger is permitted to enter. My apologies, but this is our security policy. I would advise you to respect the rules of Her Highness while you remain her guest."

Sighing in defeat, Annette turned to Slayn. "I am sorry...but he's got a point. Maybe you can tour the city while you wait."

Offering a half-joking pleading look, he whimpered, "But I wanted to tour it with you..."

Raimy, seeing the young man's silliness, giggled softly.

It was echoed by Annette, who waved him off. "Think of it as an information gathering mission. We can kill two birds with one stone then. One or both of our duties may take some time, so let's plan to meet at the hotel this evening."

The pretense of his whining gone, Slayn nodded. "Alright. Good luck, Annette!"

Once Annette had entered, Raimy fluttered in front of Slayn's face. "Um, hello? Don't you remember the promise you made? Now would be a good time to deliver the letter, don't you think?"

Laughing, Slayn placed his hands up in a gesture of surrender. "Okay, okay...we'll see if we can locate Mary, alright?"

Smiling triumphantly, Raimy flit about as Slayn turned back into town.

The guard, meanwhile, shook his head. "Country bumpkins," he muttered.

Opening the door was a bit of a challenge with the load of laundry she held in her hands, but she'd pulled it off many times before without a hitch and this was no exception.

Smiling at the gorgeous day that greeted her, Mary Dalman set the basket down near the clotheslines and began pinning the clothes for drying. As her body settled into a familiar task, her mind was free to wonder about her husband, Bob.

Some time ago, he had told her his concerns over the fate of this world and had left to see if anything could be done. That had been almost 2 years ago, and she was starting to get worried. What if...?

Her hand slipped on holding a sheet in place, but she managed to catch it in time, pinning it to the line with no further problems. Just then, the wind picked up and caused her to turn her head, seeing a young man approaching her with a quizzical look on his face. Something about his approach filled Mary with dread, and she paused in her chore as the man approached.

When he'd gotten within a few feet of her, he asked gently, "Um...are you Mary?"

The feeling of dread only grew at this question, and she wordlessly nodded in reply.

The young man's eyes grew sympathetic at that, and he reached into a pocket to pull out a letter sealed with a wax imprint. "...This is for you."

The warm day she had been greeted with seemed to have turned into the bitterest cold with that simple statement. Mary hesitantly reached out, taking the letter, and after a brief hesitation, opened it.

The neat script inside left no mistake about who had written this, and it caused her to gasp. "Th...this is from..."

"A sick man gave it to me...it was his dearest wish that you receive this letter," the messenger added, though Mary only half heard him, her eyes focused on the letter's contents.

_My Dearest Mary,_

_ If you are reading this letter, it is because I have left this world. The sun weakens as the world draws ever nearer to catastrophe. Crops are failing, wars rage daily, and people die for no good reason. It is a sad reality I can't bear for you to witness. I've wandered the continent far and wide, looking for something..._anything _that might provide a solution. And I did find a glimmer of hope._

_ The Featherians have used their knowledge of technology to craft a device that may save the world. I beg you to spread this hope now that I cannot. Their device is on an Isle in the Ocean of Rolandia, southeast of the Capital._

_Love, Bob_

Upon finishing the letter, Mary turned and buried her face in her hands. Despite the tears streaming down her cheeks, her voice was calm and steady as she said, "He searched so hard for a peaceful place...and he finally found one." Her voice decayed as she added, "But without him...I haven't the strength to go on living! He was my strength...my light and hope for the future..."

Slayn frowned in sorrow at the woman's sadness. He tried to think of some encouraging words, but...

"If you don't mind...take this letter and go to the place he spoke of. I...I don't have the heart to do it myself."

"...No. Mary, you can't give up!" Slayn suddenly spoke. "That letter...it's proof of just how much he cared about you. To give up now...it would be to reject his love."

The woman turned to look at Slayn with shimmering eyes. Blinking, she slowly wiped the tears away as she pondered his words. "...Maybe you're right. He risked his life for my future...I won't let that act of love go to waste."

With that said, Mary stepped forward, pressing the letter back into Slayn's hands. His mouth was open to refuse, when Mary stopped him, saying, "I have his words safe in my heart now. I'd like you to keep the letter."

"But..."

"Please, kind sir...Bob wished me to spread the word of this hope. I can do this on my own...you might need the assistance of this letter." With a smile and a bow, Mary finished placing the laundry on the lines, and then walked home to prepare for seeing the glimmer of hope her love gave her...

Raimy smiled at Slayn as Mary left. "Thank you for fulfilling that promise. Now the ghost can rest." Her head tilted as she looked at Slayn again, and said, "Speaking of which...Raimy senses you received another memento with a promise."

"Huh? Oh, this..." Slayn reached into his pocket, pulling out the button that the Burns lady had given him.

"Yep, that's it! Make sure you fulfill that promise too, okay?" A sad note entered her voice as she added, "It looks like Raimy doesn't need to stick around anymore...it was a short journey, but Raimy had fun. Raimy will be your friend forever!"

Slayn raised his hand in farewell as Raimy backed away. "Take care, Raimy...maybe I'll see you again someday."

"Raimy looks forward to it! Good-bye Slayn!" the diminutive fairy called out as she left.

Feeling strangely alone, Slayn headed back for the hotel. He'd been on his feet nearly all day, and was looking forward to getting some rest(as well as a snack, his grumbling stomach reminded him).

Allowing his mind to drift, since he was on autopilot, Slayn almost bumped into a soldier just outside the hotel. "Oh, excuse me sir..."

The soldier started to smile, but his kind look quickly disappeared, to be replaced with a look of pure hatred. "You!" he snarled, his left hand drifting to his sword.

Alarmed, but thoroughly confused as well, Slayn stammered, "Uh...y, yes? What's wrong, um...Chief?", hoping that adding the man's rank would get him out of whatever imaginary hot water he was suddenly in.

"You're Gray Gilbert, aren't you?" the chief snarled, his hostile manner not decreasing any.

Slayn relaxed, but only slightly...if it was just a matter of mistaken identity, it could be taken care of. "No, I'm afraid you've got the wrong person..."

"Shut up!"

Another soldier came up at this point and tapped the chief on the shoulder, his eyes warily watching Slayn. His tone though, gave the hope that this could be settled peacefully. "Chief...what's wrong? Is this guy causing some trouble?"

The chief slowly started to relax, though his eyes remained as hostile as ever. "No...he just looks very familiar...I think he's Gray Gilbert."

"Chief..." the soldier spoke in a calm, logical voice. "Gray Gilbert died two months ago, remember?"

The words, or the tone, seemed to get through the haze of hatred around the chief, and slowly the hostility died. "...Yeah...yeah, I know. I just...I just couldn't shake the feeling that I was seein' that bastard again." Shaking his head, his next statement was directed to Slayn: "Sorry about that sir...you're free to go." With that, both men left.

Thoroughly confused, Slayn scratched his head when he heard a whisper from behind him that nearly caused him to jump ten feet. _"You're still alive! I don't believe it!"_

Turning to see who had spoken to him, he could see a man of average height and build, with tanned skin and light brown hair standing just behind him, looking the opposite way. Seeing that Slayn had turned, he hissed, _"Don't turn this way! You'll attract attention!"_

Hurriedly, Slayn followed the man's instructions. A thousand questions lined up on his tongue, but before he could ask even one, the man continued, _"This is a great turn of events. As you know, I'm not a fan of Randolf, either."_

'Randolf? Why did that name sound so familiar?' was Slayn's thought. 'And why...does my body tremble with rage?'

_ "But we can't talk here, there's too many eyes and ears. We'll talk later..."_

It took a moment for Slayn to register just what that meant, and he whirled, shouting "Wait!"

Already suspecting what he would see, Slayn's initial hope was crushed by the frustration that came when he could see that there was no one behind him within earshot...and from what little he'd gotten to see of the man, there was no chance of being able to pick him out in the city.

"DAMMIT!" he swore. Turning on his heel, Slayn marched into the hotel, stewing over these latest events.

Someone had answers that he wanted, and this cloak-and-dagger stuff was NOT helping his mood any. But despite his frustration and anger, a part of Slayn was feeling hopeful. At least this proved he was from around here, so maybe others knew about him...

'But given that one soldier's reaction...maybe I'd better keep it quiet.' Nodding to himself, Slayn resolved not to mention the matter to Annette, if only for her protection. He could just imagine the uproar that would be caused if someone said a Xironian representative brought 'Gray Gilbert' to the Imperial Capital...even though he wasn't Gray.

...Was he?

**Author's Notes:** My deepest apologies for taking so long to update...let's just say that for half a year, it was a life-or-death battle with money and bills(or lack of one, and lots of the other!). Now that it's finished, I'll be trying to get back up to speed, so bear with me.:)

Hugh(John Haas): But what would a Master's Soul be doing here? In Slayn? ...Have you seen the way he dresses?


	6. Enter the Hugh, Monika and Michelle too!

_Disclaimer:__ I do not own the characters, events, and/or places in this fic. Any similarities to actual places, people, or events is entirely coincidental._

_**Extended!**_ Read Author's Notes2 at end of chapter!

**Chapter Five**

_ "It was YOU, Randolf!"_

_ "That realization has come...too late for you. But _that's _no surprise...you never were much good as an assassin. You and I both know you're too...nice. And of course, there's the matter of your sadly underwhelming intellect..."_

_ "Dammit, NO!"_

_ "Mmm...so, _this_ is the Invisibility Gem...captivating."_

_ "You have no right to take that! It's mine!"_

_ "If you can't carry out your job without this little bauble, then you aren't much of an assassin, are you? And what's a dead man going to do with this, anyway? It will be put to much better use in MY possession...oh, yes...the higher we climb, the greater the fall. See?"_

_ "Wwwwaaa...!"_

"...aaaah!"

Jerking suddenly upright, Slayn looked around wildly, his skin sweaty and heart racing. It was several moments before he calmed down enough to register what had happened.

"A dream..." he muttered.

"Uuummm...Slayn?"

The tiny voice from nowhere startled Slayn once more, but not nearly as much as the dream had. "Gah! Wh...?" Turning to where it came from, he saw a familiar diminutive figure.

"Slayn...are you alright? You were crying out in your sleep...Raimy was worried!" the Dark Fairy asked with an expression of deep concern as she hovered down in front of his face.

Shaking the last vestiges of the dream from his mind, Slayn nodded. "I...I'm fine. Thank you, Raimy," he said with a slight smile.

"Whew! Raimy is so relieved! Raimy thought you were having a terrible nightmare!" she added, perking up at Slayn's reassurance.

Slayn smiled, but then cocked his head as a question popped into his head. "So...Raimy, why did you come back?"

The fairy fluttered about in a manner similar to fidgeting, before saying, "Raimy...Raimy came back because...she feels...comfortable with you. It...feels like there's something inside Raimy that can't be apart from you." Smiling a little shyly, she asked, "Raimy has nowhere else to go, and nothing else to do...so would you mind if she came with you? Pleeeassse?" she finished with a pleading look.

Slayn couldn't help it...he had a weakness for pouts, especially on a face as cute as Raimy's. With a smirk, he said, "Sure...I don't see why not."

"Yaaaayy! Raimy is so happy! We'll always be together!" she exclaimed in joy.

"On the condition that you don't get me committed...Annette already thinks I'm loopy as it is," Slayn teased.

"Oooohhh! Are you trying to say you don't want to talk to Raimy?" she said, stamping her foot in midair as she mock glared at her companion. Just as quickly as she gave the look though, it disappeared and she smiled. "Don't worry though...Raimy knows exactly what you mean."

Nodding, Slayn stifled a yawn and looked outside. Seeing it was still dark, he said, "Well...much as now would be the ideal time to talk, I think I'd better get some more sleep...we have a long journey ahead of us tomorrow."

"Okay, Slayn...Raimy will watch over you, so you can sleep without worrying."

'She's so...well, _cute_ I guess is the only word that could accurately apply to her,' Slayn thought. Aloud, he said, "Goodnight, Raimy."

"Sweet dreams, Slayn."

_The next morning..._

Annette was already up and ready to go by the time Slayn arrived in the lobby, and she greeted him courteously. "Good morning! Did you sleep well?"

Slayn nodded, and Annette immediately continued, "My audience with the queen lasted into the early hours this morning, but an alliance agreement has been made!" At that, Slayn raised his eyebrows, but said nothing. He had no doubts of her success, but he was a bit concerned for her health...he didn't think a few hours of sleep would serve them well on a trip to Rolandia.

"The official form will be delivered by messenger when they have completed it. Until then, we can look for a new land as Father suggested," she finished.

"About that..." Slayn cut in, pulling the letter out of his pocket. "I came across this while you were cementing the alliance. What do you say about checking this out?" So saying, he handed the form to her.

Her eyebrows dipped down in thought, and slowly climbed as she read the words contained within. Finally, she shook her head. "I...I can scarcely believe this! The Featherians are working on a plan to save the world? This definitely merits further investigation! We'll have to travel through Schwartzhaas through the southeast exit to get there."

"Okay...you take the medicines, I'll take the armor, then?" Slayn asked.

Annette stuck out her tongue at that idea. "How about **I **take the armor, and you get the medicines? Last time you bought armor, it was three sizes too big! And I hope for your sake that you didn't think I was getting fat!" she added with a mischievous glare.

"Oh come on, Annette! That was one little mistake...you can't hold that against me for the rest of my life!" Slayn pleaded.

Turning with a grin, she threw over her shoulder, "Watch me," before disappearing out the hotel doors.

Slayn sighed, his shoulders slumping. "Life sucks," he moaned.

The shopping was done quickly, but the trip turned out to take longer than expected. The monsters proved to be quite formidable in the southeastern section of the continent, and several times they ended up having to stop in order to use some of the healing medicine they had bought in Falkenfreuk. Irritatingly, it turned out to be for naught when they arrived at the passage to Rolandia...

"Halt! You may not pass!" snapped the guard with an authoritative tone.

Confused, both Slayn and Annette halted, but it was Annette who spoke: "...This IS the passage to Rolandia, isn't it? We must pass!"

Shaking his head, the guard replied, "I'm sorry, only those who have permission from Lord Granford may pass. He is the mayor of Bibliostock...if you are so desperate as to need passage, seek him out there."

With few other options, they trudged back, fortunately encountering only one more monster group. This was just as well, since at that point, they had run out of healing supplies. Both breathed a sigh of relief as they neared the city gate, and Slayn made a note to see if they could also pick up some new armor, as he flexed his arm and winced. Some of those monsters could hit HARD!

As they entered the city, Annette snapped her fingers. "Wait! I just remembered something! They have a library here too." Turning to Slayn, she said, "I bet they'll have some information on this project of the Featherians...it wouldn't hurt to at least look, anyway!"

Finding no fault with her reasoning, the two headed for the library tower, only to find a minor altercation at the entrance...

"Listen! I've come a long way, and I don't want to wait!" huffed a man dressed in green livery to the guard.

Shaking his head as he doubtlessly had many times before, the guard replied, "I'm sorry...but orders are to not allow any civilians inside until the renovations are complete."

Stomping his foot, the man said, "I heard that the FIRST ten times you said it! Okay, you're really making me mad! I want to talk to someone in charge!" Turning on his heels, the red-faced(yet green dressed) man stomped past Slayn and Annette.

Sighing, Annette said, "Well, so much for my great idea...maybe we should..."

"Follow him?"

That caught the red-head off-guard, and she turned to quizzically look at her companion. "Follow him? What for?"

"Well, he seems to know where he might be able to get permission to enter the tower. And if he can get it, then maybe we can as well. Or, if we can't, maybe we can have him look for the information we need," Slayn answered.

Her expression brightening, Annette said, "That's a great idea! Come on, then!"

Knowing where the Governor's house is, Annette deduced that to be the logical place where the mystery man had gone. Sure enough, they found him outside the gate, speaking with the butler.

"Oh, come on! Do you want me to beg? All I need is a few minutes! _Pleasepleaseplease?_ Please?"

Well, maybe _talking_ wasn't quite the right word...

"I'm terribly sorry, but I must deny your request. Until the construction is complete, it would be unsafe for you to enter," came the expected reply.

"What about the old hands and knees routine? Would that work? It's no biggie...I have callouses!"

Nearly cracking a smile(though it was hard to tell), the butler said, "I'm afraid not, sir. I can't grant you access."

Lowering his voice, the man continued, "But it's just you and me...and the wind! Who's gonna know? I'm certainly not going to tell anyone...if you know what I'm gettin' at..."

His voice laced with regret, the butler again refused. "I am sorry, but while Sir Granford is ill, I cannot allow anyone to disturb him, directly or indirectly."

Seeing that begging and persuasion wasn't working, the man finally took the last route open to him: indignation. "I see...fine, be that way. You're not going to make any friends with that attitude." Again turning on his heels, he stalked off and stared at the fountain moodily.

Knowing now that they wouldn't be granted access to the library, but needing something else anyway, they approached the butler. "Excuse me, but is Sir Granford in?" Annette questioned.

The butler smiled at Annette, but said, "He is, but...I'm afraid the governor is very ill right now and cannot see anyone. Perhaps I can help you with something?"

"Well..."

"Hhhmmm...Rolandia? That's quite a dangerous journey through the Regan Mountain range...there's a good chance you might perish during the trip," was the reply.

Still standing by the fountain, but not looking quite so peeved anymore, the man was listening intently...from a supposedly impossible distance.

Sighing, the butler shrugged. "Still, if this is of such importance to you, I will send word to allow you passage through our blockade."

Bowing, Slayn said, "Thank you, sir," with Annette echoing his sentiments. Turning to head for the inn(since it had been a long day), they were stopped by a familiar voice calling out.

"Hey there, friends!"

Turning, they saw that the man from before who had been begging to get into the library had called them. Hesitantly, Annette replied, "Yes?"

Speaking to them as if they were old friends, the man said, "You know, I've got the sense that you've got an interesting tale to tell."

Not following his line of thought, Annette asked, "...Tale to tell?"

"Yeah, tale. Uh, wait just a moment!" Turning to politely cough, he returned his attention back to the two and said in an obnoxiously noble tone, "I couldn't help but overhear that you were seeking to travel to Rolandia. If you don't mind, I'd like to join you since I'm traveling the same way...or something like that. I just wanna hitch a ride, if you catch my drift!"

A little perturbed by the man's unusual speech(a feeling that Slayn shared), Annette asked, "Who _are _you?"

Adopting his 'noble tone' again, the man said, "I'm just a fellow traveler in need of good company, scintillating conversation, fine food, a mellow wine, you know...the simple things in life. In dangerous places, I'm your man. They say I'm the handiest man around!"

Annette still looked perturbed, but Slayn was starting to struggle between his own perturbed look and a grin. Raimy, for her own part, giggled. "Heehee...this man's funny!"

"I...I don't know...how can we be certain you're reliable?" Annette asked. Turning to Slayn, she asked, "Slayn...what do you think?"

Grasping his chin in thought, he gave the matter some practical, friendly, and brutal thought. Finally, he shrugged. _'If all else fails, he can serve as a living shield,'_ he thought.

"If he wants to join us, I have no problem with it."

"Yessss! Thanks a million...you won't regret this! Oh, by the way, I'm Hugh Foster. Good to meet you!" he introduced himself, shaking both of their hands. Slayn was the only one who saw it, but...it seemed like he also nodded at Slayn's shoulder, winking. Looking down at his shoulder, he saw that Raimy was sitting there for a brief rest.

_'Was he...? No, he couldn't have been...it must have just been a coincidence.'_

"Uh...my name is Annette Burns."

"Burns is right! Ttttsssss! You're hot!"

Coolly, Annette replied, "Need I remind you that we _allowed _you to join us, and can just as easily disallow it?"

Only slightly put off, Hugh replied, "Hey now...you're puttin' me down! It's a little early for a cold shower!" Turning to Slayn, he asked, "And you must be our fearless leader, right? You're one lucky fellow to be travelling with a sweet thing like this. Rrrrrrrow!"

Slayn really hated having pale skin, since it made it quite easy for others to know when he blushed...like right now. Glancing over at Annette, he saw that she had red cheeks too...though he suspected it was from anger.

"Ugh...I'm beginning to think we made a terrible mistake. You have the manners of a drunken ogre!" she lamented as she rubbed her forehead.

Stammering, Hugh said, "But, I...I...I wasn't talking about you, Annette!"

Annette blinked in confusion, and Slayn's eyes narrowed in suspicion, especially at hearing Raimy's slight gasp.

Turning to Slayn, Hugh whispered, _"Say, when you get a chance, I'd like to have a word with you privately. Just let me know when you have a minute."_

Still a bit confused(but suspecting he knew part of what Hugh was going to ask/talk to him about), Slayn nodded.

"So what's the first order of business? Are we heading straight to Rolandia, or are we taking a detour?" Hugh asked.

Annette didn't seem too inclined to answer him, so Slayn spoke in her stead, "Actually, we're planning on going to the inn for a room...it's late now, and we already made the trip once. It would be annoying to head out right away and find out we arrived at the passage before the messenger did."

"Mmm, right. Never bet against the house, I always say...so what time are we heading out?"

"First light. As soon as we get through the passage, we need to find the Featherians as quickly as possible, so it would be nice to exit it with some daylight left to search." This time, Annette did deign to answer him, though her tone made it clear she was only doing so out of necessity.

Seeing an armor and a medicine shop nearby, Slayn told his companions, "Just a minute," and jogged over first to the medicine shop, seeking to replenish the stores that had been exhausted on their trip. After a bit, the old woman there bowed apologetically, and Slayn waved his hand frantically as if trying to calm her down.

Hugh frowned slightly at that point. "Well, that's weird..."

Despite her earlier reservations, Annette inquired, "What is?"

Fortunately, he was saved from having to answer by Slayn's timely arrival. "I don't believe this! Only a quarter of the medicine shop's wares are being sold right now, and gem and armor sales are prohibited to civilians!" he spoke in a slightly indignant tone.

"Well, they ARE on the frontlines of the civil war, you know! I doubt one side will look favorably on them for supplying their enemies with fresh supplies! That wouldn't exactly be a slap on the wrist offense..." Hugh commented.

"True...still a little annoying, though. Those damn monsters can hit hard!" Slayn said with a slight wince.

"Well, we have some extra help...I think we can do without the armor for now, at least," Annette chimed in.

"That's the spirit! Suffering builds character, after all...though I never noticed it build anything except callouses and pain, but that's beside the point!" Hugh encouraged.

Shooting a brief smirk at Hugh, Slayn then brightened. "Wait a minute...why don't we take a quick jaunt to Bornia village? We can kill two birds with one stone: find out if they have better armor for sale, and shave a few hours off our trip tomorrow."

"Hey, I like that idea, Chief! Always helps to enter hostile territory bright-eyed and bushy-tailed," Hugh affirmed.

Annette nodded in concurrence as well. "After all, it's not like Bornia's out of our way, either." Looking up at the sky, she added, "We'd better get a move on, though...it's already late afternoon, and I don't want to be out in the field after nightfall."

Smiling at each of his companions, Slayn took charge, and said, "Well...let's go!"

"...It's too quiet. Have I mentioned that I hate it when it's too quiet?"

Irritatedly, Annette shushed their companion as the trio closed in on the village of Bornia. With a grimace, Hugh did as he was bid, though his head was cocked, as if to catch a slight sound that only he could hear.

Slayn, who was on point, waved his companions forward as he stood next to the gate entrance. Once they approached, he took a quick peek around the corner, and then crept forward to a stall, his comrades trailing silently behind.

"This is weird...I mean, it was weird enough that no one was there to meet us at the gate, but...it almost seems like it's a ghost town," Annette muttered.

"Not quite...the people are hiding," Hugh replied.

"Hiding? From whom?" she inquired.

Grimly, Slayn suggested, "I'd wager from them."

Seeing his line of sight traveling past the corner of the house they were hiding behind, Annette peeked around carefully as well. The sight she saw made her gasp and color with outrage.

Standing around a haphazardly stacked pile of goods were a group of soldiers, whose armor clearly marked them as members of Theodora's Faction, whom they had just allied themselves with. Their commander seemed to be complaining about something, only to turn on a lower ranking soldier who had obviously said something he shouldn't have.

"They...they can't be..."

"Oh, the news gets better, dear Annette...they are. And the commander seems confident they'll get away with it too, since the war will keep their superiors busy," Hugh cut in.

Slayn turned a quizzical eye to their companion, but before he could comment on anything, Annette softly(so as not to alert the criminals) exploded. "That's disgraceful! They're stealing from the very people they've sworn to protect!"

Something, Slayn didn't know what, was stirred to anger by Annette's comment. Anger at the soldiers, and their underhanded ways. Turning to his two companions, he stated bluntly, "Then now is the time to teach them a lesson...one they shall not soon forget!"

Both of his comrades were surprised at his words, but Hugh added some words: "Whoah, hold on Chief! In case you didn't notice, they have us outnumbered, AND they have magicians for support! If you're that eager to get killed, there are a LOT less painful ways to do it!"

Slayn smirked as he replied, "That's why we won't charge in...even I'm not that stupid. Look," he pointed to the soldiers, who were still milling about as the commander paced and wildly gesticulated, "the commander is the only one with any real combat experience. Now, I don't know about you Hugh, but Annette and I can easily handle his cronies...and I'm sure that even if your skills are sub-par, you can handle the magicians."

"Well...yeah..."

"So, here's what we'll do..."

Moments later, Slayn stepped out into plain sight and walked purposefully up the main avenue straight to the gathering. It wasn't long before he was spotted.

"C, chief!" one of the soldiers shouted, brandishing his broad axe(rather clumsily, Slayn noted).

The officer in question turned, as did the others, and as more weapons were drawn, his eyes simply narrowed. "Well now, who do we have here? You don't have the look of an ordinary traveler...so who are you?"

Brimming with a confidence that most would deem unnatural, Slayn crossed his arms over his chest and replied, "My name is of no importance to thieves and brigands who play at being soldiers! Return what you have stolen immediately!"

There was a moment's pause as the soldiers present digested his words, and then a ripple of laughter swept over the crowd. It was again, the commander who spoke once he had control of his mirth: "Oh really? You and what army, pray tell?"

"THIS army, you cheap sack of grits!"

"And don't let the numbers fool you...our quality more than makes up for your shoddy quantity!"

With those statements, both Annette and Hugh stepped from around the corners of the houses to Slayn's sides, effectively boxing in the soldiers. Judging from the sneers on some of their faces though, the soldiers weren't impressed.

"Well then...let's see if your bite's as big as your bark!" the commander snarled, pulling out his sword. "Alright men...give them exactly what they deserve! And then some!"

With a fluid motion, Slayn called up his Ring Weapon, the giant sword appearing in his hand even as he settled into his combat stance. He could see, out of the corner of his eye, Hugh heading straight for one of the magicians, who was beginning to conjure up some support spells, and Annette appeared to get stuck with a few regular soldiers...which left him, for some reason(possibly because he had shot his mouth off a bit too much, he lamented) with the axe-wielding soldiers.

Focusing his mind on the here and now, Slayn easily dodged the first wild swing from his opponent, driving in for a solid blow that cut through the steel armor. Grunting, the soldier stepped back, allowing his fresh comrade to take his place. This time, unable to dodge, Slayn parried the blow on his blade, grunting slightly as the exertion pulled on his muscles.

_'Slayn...sometimes you will need to deal more damage to an enemy in one blow than you normally can...' the kind man(someone he trusted...how, he could not say) began his lesson._

Dodging another swing, Slayn could feel the onset of another memory, and tried to relax, to let it guide him...

_'Focus your inner energy, your soul...push it into your weapon, and at the moment of impact, release that energy!' And with that, the man demonstrated, cleaving a rock in two with one mighty blow..._

"HHHYYYAAAHHH!" Slayn cried out, his blade biting deep into the armor and flesh of the uninjured soldier. For a moment, the two stood there in a tableau, before a flash of light pushed them apart...Slayn landing lightly on his feet, and the soldier crashing to the ground in a lifeless heap.

Gasping lightly, the young man spared a quick glance at his companions, seeing that Hugh had quickly dispatched both magicians, and was now in the midst of helping Annette fend off the soldiers that had converged on her...not that she seemed to NEED the help...

"...What are you thinking?" an unfamiliar voice demanded.

Not able to spare time to look, Slayn instead struck again at his previously wounded opponent, weakening him further. A half-hearted blow was almost contemptuously knocked aside, giving Slayn the chance to see the new arrival.

Standing between the party and the enemy commander was a young man, not much older than Slayn, dressed in a formal field uniform of high rank. At his side was a sheathed _katana_ sword, which he held steady with one hand.

"So this is what the soldiers of Theodora's Faction have resorted to? Pillaging and looting?" the youth demanded.

The commander simply snarled. "There's a hefty price on your head, Orpheus...and I intend to collect on it!" That said, the officer hastily attacked with a blow that any of the others would have been hard pressed to dodge, or even block. Orpheus however, dodged it with ease, as well as the two follow-up strikes that came afterward. Then, with a simple, graceful move that the eyes could barely follow, his sword flew out and back into its sheath. Though the attack was impossible to follow, the results were equally impossible to miss...the severed body halves of the thieving commander, lying on the ground, a look of surprise frozen on his face.

So complete was his shock over the attack from this newcomer, that Slayn had forgotten his own battle until he felt a thudding pain on his back, followed by a burning sensation. Cursing his carelessness, Slayn whirled instantly, bringing his sword down to bisect the man's head, helmet and all. As the corpse fell to the ground, Slayn dropped as well, though only to his knees. Instantly, Annette was by his side, and about to apply some medicinal herbs, when Hugh stopped her.

"Hang on, this might work a bit better..." And with that, he began chanting some Arias...arias that sounded vaguely familiar to Slayn... It wasn't until he noticed that the pain had stopped that he remembered what arias those had been for.

"That was Cure magic, wasn't it?" he asked. Hugh shrugged modestly in response. "Always best to be prepared...especially when you're traveling on your own," he said with a smirk.

"Well in any case, thank you...but more importantly," Slayn stated, turning to look at the young man who even now was approaching them in a friendly manner.

When he got within range, Orpheus spoke first. "I owe you my thanks for coming to the aid of this village. As a soldier of the Empire, let me say that his actions shame us all. Were any of you injured in the conflict?"

Annette was the one who responded to that. "Uh, no...well, not seriously anyway. Thank you for helping us, Mr...uh..."

"Orpheus Liedbulk, Commander of the 3rd Regiment, Empire Army," the young man introduced himself.

"Well...thank you, Orpheus," Annette responded with a gracious smile. The smile faded to be replaced with a puzzled look. "Tell me, if those soldiers were of the Empire too, why did they fight against you?"

A shadow of shame seemed to pass over Orpheus' face as he explained: "Shamefully, our army has been split into two factions. One follows Theodora, the mother of Prince Karl, and the other follows James, second in line to the Throne. Those soldiers follow Theodora, while I aligned with James' faction."

Pursing her lips in mild irritation, Annette muttered, "But if one will become Emperor anyway...this war is nothing more than a crime against civilians."

Wearily, Orpheus nodded, having obviously heard the same arguments many times before. "Objectively speaking, I believe what you say has the ring of truth, and it is sad..." His reply was cut off suddenly by a light coughing fit that he quickly brought under control. "I'm sorry...please excuse me."

Her concern piqued, Annette stepped forward. "Are you hurt?"

Orpheus merely stepped back, waving away her concern. "Yes, don't worry. It's probably just dust from the battle irritating my lungs. If you'll excuse me..." Taking a few steps past them, he suddenly turned to impart a few last words of advice: "Watch yourselves. As you have seen, there is no such thing as absolute safety in these times." With that, he bowed respectfully and turned, leaving the village behind.

"Well, that was a surprise...meeting a top general in the Imperial Army isn't your everyday occurrence!" Hugh commented. When Annette didn't respond, he turned to see her staring at the direction Orpheus had gone with a concerned look on her face. Elbowing her gently, he said, "Hey, what's with the gloom-and-doom look, Annette? He said he was fine! Besides, you'll make Slayn jealous if you keep swooning over Orpheus."

"Wha...? You jerk, it's nothing like that! I was just...just concerned, okay? And besides, Slayn and I are not like that! Right, Slayn?" Annette sputtered as she turned to the young man for support.

"W, well...I suppose if that's..."

"Right, see? Nothing between us!" Annette stated triumphantly.

"Uh-huh...sure thing, Annette. I understand," Hugh replied with a grin that told all and sundry he didn't buy it for a moment.

Stamping her foot in the ground, Annette growled, "Oh, whatever! Let's just get this stuff to the people, alright?"

Fortunately, they had only managed to grab an armful apiece of various items when the townsfolk came from the back end of town, with curious, and then relieved looks on their faces. Little time was wasted before they began congratulating the trio on their help, along with some items donated to their cause. As a pack of recovery medicine was handed to him, Slayn happened to ask where the villagers had been hiding...

"Oh, we were hiding in Monika's house! She's the only one who can use magic, so it made sense to us to hole up in there," a tall, broad-shouldered man in a straw hat commented. "She's the grandchild of Mr. Allenford, and as smart as a whip, even for a Featherian!"

That comment grabbed both Slayn and Annette's attention, and both of them exchanged a significant look. Casually, Slayn asked the man, "Where did you say Monika lived again?"

"Why, in the house furthest in the village, of course! She didn't come out here...guess she and her grandpa don't have much that the soldiers would have considered valuable...but I'm sure she'd want to thank you for helping us out as well."

Thanking the man for the directions, the trio left the villagers to collect their belongings and trekked to the back of the village. Fortunately, even without the directions given earlier, it was fairly easy to pick out the likeliest candidate for Monika's house...it was the only one with an undamaged door. Stepping up to the door, Slayn knocked gently twice.

Cautiously, the door opened a crack, and was then opened wider to reveal a young girl dressed in a unique, almost skintight, dress, complete with a hat, that complemented her hair nicely. It wasn't until Slayn saw the wings on her back that he realized he'd seen her before...

"You were in Schwartzhaas earlier, weren't you?" he blurted out.

The girl frowned in confusion, but that quickly cleared. "I have been to Schwartzhaas many times in the past...so you are probably correct in your assessment." Turning to address the others as well, she added, "If you are here to see my grandfather, I am afraid he will not return for some time. Perhaps I can assist you in some way?"

At this point, Annette stepped up to the plate. "As a matter of fact, you can. There's something I've been wanting to ask a Featherian. I've heard rumors of a project the Featherians are working on that can deliver the world from destruction. Do you know of it?"

The Featherian girl's eyes brightened at the mention of the project. "Ah, so you have heard of the Space-Time Fusion project."

"Space-Time Fusion?" Annette asked.

"It's some fancy-schmancy project that some other Featherian tried to explain to me. The whole thing gave me a massive headache when I tried to understand it, so I stopped," Hugh commented.

"...Could you take us to the research site?" Slayn asked.

"You have saved my village. The least I can do is show you to the Featherian research site."

"Oh, that's too much bother! You don't need to do that!" Annette protested.

"It's not a bother at all. Besides, you will be unable to reach the island without me, in any event," the girl gently replied.

"Island?"

"Yes...but rather than trying to explain, I will simply show you. I can guide you there, as long as we stop by Michelle's house on the way out of the village."

"I don't see any problem with that," Slayn mused, to which his companions nodded in affirmation. "We do need to rest before heading out, though...we certainly weren't expecting to get caught in a battle here..."

"I see. Well, we can check on Michelle now, and if you wish, you may stay the night here. I assume you wished to head out at first light, correct?" Receiving confirming nods, the girl continued, "Oh, and since we will be traveling together, my name is Monika Allenford. Pleased to make your acquaintances."

After the round of introductions had been made, Monika lead the way to Michelle's house. During the time of their conversation, most of the residents had now turned to repairing their house doors, since they had already claimed their belongings from the hoard that the soldiers had been collecting. Even the corpses had now been hauled away, though the bloodstains still remained.

Just in front of the entry gate to Bornia, Monika gestured. "This is Michelle Liedbulk's house." With that brief introduction, she knocked lightly on the door. After a momentary pause, the door was opened to reveal a cheerful man dressed in a conservative two-piece suit. His smile widened when he saw who was at the door. "Ah! So glad you've returned, Monika!"

Bowing, Monika replied, "I've come to check on the device."

"Ah, of course. Right this way." With that, he ushered everyone inside. Even having spent time in the lap of luxury, both Annette and Slayn were impressed, but Hugh was visibly awed at the splendor of the house, despite its drab-looking exterior. Despite its size, it wasn't long before they reached a room that was partitioned by a large glass window. On the side with Slayn and his companions, there sat a large computer console, with a sealed door between it and the window. On the other side was what appeared to be a normal bedroom, with a sandy-haired young woman facing the room's bookcase.

With the hint of a smile on her face, Monika softly stated, "That's right. Never give up hope..."

Apparently the window didn't make talking a difficult chore, for the girl immediately turned with a look of joy on her face. "Monika! I'm soooo glad to see you! Will you stay with me for a while?"

With true regret, Monika replied, "I _am_ sorry, but I am only here to maintain the device."

Michelle's face fell a bit at that, but she still maintained a cheerful composure. "Oh...right, I see. But at least you brought lots of friends with you. It's so lonely here. I feel like I'm imprisoned..."

"Please, feel free to talk with them while I work on your device," Monika offered before stepping up to the console.

Awkwardly, the girl started by introducing herself. "Okay...well, hi. I'm Michelle Liedbulk. Sorry for the crazy arrangement. I know talking through the window isn't very convenient, but I must stay inside."

"No problem, I understand at least. My name's Huge...HUGH! Hugh Foster!"

"Slayn Wilder," he introduced himself with a pleasant smile and nod of the head.

"Nice to meet you, Slayn," Michelle replied with a smile.

"I'm Annette Burns. Good to meet you too!" Frowning a bit, Annette asked, "Do you mind telling us why you're confined to that space?"

A cloud settled over Michelle's face as she lowered her gaze. "It's because I must stay in a clean environment. I can't survive out there."

"Well, why not? It's not THAT dirty out here!" Hugh queried.

Monika took this moment to answer. "Michelle was born with a poor immune response. Even a slight cold could kill her. The room is kept sterile due to this device, so she can live."

"...So, you mean to say that she has never been, and will never be outside?" Annette asked in astonishment.

Monika nodded. "Right. To leave that room would be taking a great risk."

"Hm, yeah...never bet against the house, I always say," came the ever-reliable commentary.

A look of sorrow came across Annette as she spoke again, "I'm so sorry to hear that..."

"This unit is functioning properly. I need to check the outdoor unit now," Monika stated, leaving the room shortly afterwards.

Michelle sighed, prompting Slayn to ask what was wrong. "It's just...I feel like I'm a doll on display in a glass case," she clarified. "The world I want so badly to see is deadly to me at the same time..."

Slayn lowered his head. "I...I don't know what to say...'I'm sorry' seems so inadequate..."

A slight smile tugged at Michelle's lips then. "Well...I complain when it gets all overwhelming, but the fact remains that I am alive. But enough about me...it's so rare for me to have guests. What would you like to talk about?"

At that moment, seeing her smile, and remembering the last name..."Do you happen to know an Orpheus Liedbulk?"

"Orpheus is my brother! Why do you ask? Is he alright?"

"He's fine. We saw him just moments after we got into the village, as a matter of fact..." A few moments were spent telling her about the previous battle, which made Michelle smile, though with a touch of sadness. Finally, once Slayn had finished, "If only that battle had not been, he would have had the chance to visit me. But I am still happy that he thinks of me." Smiling genuinely at Slayn, she said, "I'd like it very much if we were to become friends, Slayn."

Something about her smile was infectious, and Slayn smiled back. "I would too, Michelle. If there's anything I can do for you, just name it."

"Well...it's silly, but...if there was some way that I could go to the ocean, I would love it. I can see the sky and the mountains from here, but not the ocean." Sighing longingly, she whispered, "I can only imagine how beautiful it must be..."

At that moment, Monika walked in. "I have finished checking the outdoor device," she announced. "If the seal remains unbroken, there appears to be enough catalyst for fifty years or more." Turning and walking to the section of the window that Michelle was near, Monika smiled. "I'm afraid we must be going now. Take care, Michelle."

"Thank you so much for everything you've done! Please, visit me again soon!" she begged.

With that promise made, the four travelers made ready to set out for the Kingdom of Rolandia at first light. Little did they know that things were being set up for the future of their world...

Author's Note: Okay, once again I had comp troubles...this time, it was in the form of my computer actually DYING, piece by piece. First I lost my HD with 5 years worth of wallpapers and pics(not to mention music) on it, and then my CD-ROMs started dying. Needless to say, I think it was time to pass it on.

At any rate, I should be able to keep this up more regularly now...we'll just have to see. Sorry this chapter isn't much longer, but I wanted to get something up for you people to see and enjoy before I got complaints, lol.

**Author's Note2:** Alright, as at least two of you have seen, I added more to this chapter. The main reason was because I had absolutely NO idea on how to feasibly get them to Bornia...so, making them press on a bit further from Bibliostock seemed like the safest bet. Of course, once I got them IN Bornia, then I couldn't stop until after Monika and Michelle had been introduced, so this chapter turned into My Little Monster(bonus points if you get that catchphrase).

To VTM - thanks for your reviews. Sorry I haven't been reviewing your stories lately, but...you've ventured into territory I just don't feel comfortable with reading, let alone reviewing. Sorry.

To SRR - As above, thanks for your reviews. As I mentioned in the prologue, some liberties are being taken(indeed, almost HAVE to be taken) to bring a little more 'life' into certain scenes. Silent protagonists may work for video games, but not for stories, lol.

Oh, and about the endings?;) Well, I'll have to get back to you on that...don't wanna spoil it for everyone, after all. Give me some contact info, and I can drop the hint to you.:D


	7. Author's Note and a Teaser!

_Disclaimer:__ I own none of the ideas, characters, or locales present in this fanfic._

**Author's Note: **WOW! If anyone out there still has this on their alert or favorites list, God bless you! I do not deserve such loyalty. I could go into a long spiel about why I haven't written in oh-so-long, but I won't use excuses. I am back, and intend to use my time constructively, which means a significant portion of writing. This story has been revamped slightly(mostly little stuff), and to send out an alert to everyone, I'm posting a teaser chapter so I don't break ff net's rules.

Anyway, again, and if you're still out there willing to read, God bless you!

**Chapter Six**

Slayn rubbed his eyes tiredly as he and his comrades made their way from Bornia to the tunnel to Rolandia. He glanced back, shooting an unnoticed dark look at the source of his current misery.

_ 'I seriously wish I'd followed my impulse and knocked him unconscious,' _was the thought that followed. Thanks to Hugh's rather LOUD snoring, Slayn had had very little sleep through the night. Some tonkaf helped him to be more alert, but he couldn't wait to sleep in a separate room again.

A giggle caught his attention, and he shot another look back, seeing Annette quietly talking with their guide. The young Featherian was quite shy, he'd found out; after her offer to let them use her house, she'd barely spoken to them beyond what was necessary...but it seemed like Annette had really taken to her. Slayn thought that the feeling was mutual, seeing as Monika did seem more relaxed with Annette around, and once or twice, he could have sworn there was a small smile on her face...

Before that thought continued any further, the quartet found themselves in front of the tunnel entrance where by chance, the same guards they had met the other day were stationed again.

"Ah, there you are! I just received orders from Sir Granford to let you pass!" the guard standing by the smaller door informed them.

"What? You mean...Sir Granford came here personally?" Annette asked with some confusion.

"Uh, no...I mean, orders came through one of Sir Granford's messengers," the guard clarified. Turning quickly, he released a bolt, and threw the heavy beam that barred the door back. Pulling the door open as he stepped to the side, he said, "You're free to go. But..." At this, his eyes turned down, and he began nervously chewing his lip. "I would suggest you brace yourself for what you're about to see."

"What do you mean?" Slayn asked.

Silence was their answer until the other guard stated, "We of the Schelfengrif Empire had to turn our backs on the starving masses in Rolandia. Thus, it's why the tunnel was barred...we haven't heard anything for over a year now."

A warning bell went off in Slayn's mind at such selective words, and he shot a look at the others. Monika was hard to read, but she seemed nervous, whereas Hugh and Annette were curious, albeit concerned.

"Well, we can't go forward standing around. Let's go," the silver-haired boy said. With only the slightest hesitation, the others followed him inside.

"...I was prepared for the worst, but not for this. This is plain ugly..." Hugh said with a note of despair.

Shaking her head in rage, Annette fumed; "This is far beyond ugly! How many people perished here?"

Around them was the subject of Hugh's and Annette's concerns. In multitudes of boxes, or scattered about the floor where they fell, were the skeletal remains of Rolandia's citizens. One skeleton that had caught Slayn's eye when they entered was still lying at the door, scratch marks deeply embedded in the bottom half of the wood; almost as if the person had tried clawing their way through the door barehanded.

"Why would the Empire abandon scores of innocents in Rolandia, leaving them to die?" Annette continued.

"They couldn't do anything but stop the famine from spreading. They had to do this; there was no choice," Hugh explained.

Silently, Slayn and Monika watched as Annette spun and glared at Hugh, as though he were the one who personally ordered the tunnel closed. "There's **always** a choice! They made the wrong one!"

Continuing to reason with her, Hugh explained, "Think about it Annette. If thousands of diseased, starving refugees piled into the Empire, what would have happened? The Schelfengrif Empire could barely sustain the people they had. Adding more would have pushed them beyond the breaking point." Sighing as he looked about with pain in his eyes, he added, "I'm not saying I agree with this...but their decision IS understandable."

Blinking a bit, Monika spoke for the first time: "Hugh...I am surprised. That was so...well said."

Sniffling a bit, Hugh replied, "Oh...I, I'm full of surprises. Y, you'll see."

Her jaw working at nothing, Annette simply turned and walked off to a nearby corner. Slayn knew she understood what Hugh was getting at as well, but she needed some time alone to sort things out. Deciding it would be best to give her that time, he began looking the room over...and did a double take as he saw a transparent shape standing over the skeleton near the door.

Raimy gasped. "Slayn! Do you see what Raimy sees?"

Glancing over to make sure his companions wouldn't hear, he whispered back, "That ghost, you mean?"

Raimy hovered just in his vision range and nodded. "They're confused...they can't find their place in the life cycle again."

_ 'Life cycle...eternal circle of birth, life, death, reincarnation...the goal of our order...'_

Again, something nagged at Slayn, and propelled by impulse, he walked forward, approaching the ghost. As he got within a few feet of it, he could hear its pleas:

"...Open up! Please...open the door! We're...we're starving!"

Slayn gently touched the ghost, and a sound almost like a sigh was heard as the spirit quietly disappeared.

Sensing more nearby(though he again wasn't sure how), Slayn quietly ducked into the next antechamber and sure enough, saw three more confused spirits.

The first was spiteful towards the Empire. "Why? Why won't they help us? We're dying in here!"

Taking the same route that Hugh had with Annette, Slayn calmly explained the situation, adding that he didn't think it was the right decision, but the only one that ANYONE could have made, given the circumstances. As he finished, the ghost slowly nodded. "...R, right...if we were in their position..." And with that acceptance, the spirit sighed and disappeared.

The next was a little child, who was crying in pain. His heart aching for the child, Slayn was even more saddened upon hearing the child's words: "...I can't feel my legs anymore. Mommy? Daddy? Help me!"

Speaking softly, Slayn said, "Hey, little one. Listen, if you stay here, you won't be able to see your Mommy and Daddy again."

Confused, and still sobbing a bit, the child looked up at Slayn. "R, really?"

"Yes...you have to go to them. I'm sure that they're in as much pain as you right now, and want you back with them."

"But...where do I...?" Suddenly, the child hopped to its feet and turned towards the wall. "OH! There they are! Mommy! Daddy!"

With another sigh, the spirit was sent on its way, leaving Slayn to deal with one last soul.

"The failing sunlight brought this tragedy to us. Why did the sun weaken?" the ghost complained.

"...I don't know. But we are on our way to investigate a plan to save the world. I pray that this will include restoring the lost sunlight," Slayn tried to assure the ghost.

Nodding slowly, the ghost smiled. "Please...find the cause and save those still living..." Entrusting Slayn with his hope, the ghost disappeared silently.

Her voice tinged with compassion, Raimy spoke again: "They suffered so greatly, and just wanted someone to understand their pain." Hovering in front of her companion's face, she smiled. "Slayn gave them what they needed to be released from this place and return to the cycle of life." Her smile disappeared and she gestured. "But Raimy thinks you need to speak to Annette right now, don't you think?"

Agreeing, Slayn returned to the entrance, seeing Monika and Hugh in deep discussion. Seeing that they seemed to be fine, he headed straight for Annette, though as he passed by;

"So you see, sweet-cheeks..."

"I would greatly appreciate it if you didn't call me that."

Stopping behind his friend, Slayn asked, "Annette? You okay?"

Wiping her eyes hurriedly, the auburn-haired girl turned and nodded. "I...I'm sorry, Slayn. I'm all right." Forcing herself to be a bit more optimistic, she said, "We should hurry to do our job here. It may be presumptuous to think so, but I want these to be the last deaths from the lack of sunlight."

Nodding, Slayn called for Monika and Hugh, and the four continued on their way.


End file.
